《Dungeoneers》


 High School

    Date: March 12, 2020 - 3:15pm


    Location: Merrick


    In between shuffling some papers on her desk, Ms. Henderson, the geography class teacher, would glare at the class during their detention. A couple of the students would meet her glare and reciprocate, but for the most part, the rest were either napping with their heads on the desk or their hands, or they were reading a novel or textbook. However, in their heads, the students were unanimous about one thing: they hated Ms. Henderson.


    When time seemed to just continue to drag on until Ms. Henderson finally let them out, one student suddenly groaned. Ms. Henderson was about to ask who that was when the entire classroom shook. Actually, the whole school shook. All the students looked around and as they were contemplating whether or not this was an earthquake, they heard loud banging sounds from the floor above. The banging sounds were then accompanied by stomping, but the shaking of the classroom did cease. Instead of an earthquake, it sounded as if a whole classroom were marching above them. Ms. Henderson clicked her tongue.


    "Looks like there''s a class up there that might just be worse than yours," she said. Nobody in the class bothered to respond. The noise continued, and eventually, Ms. Henderson angrily got up from her seat. "Am I going to be the one who has to do something about that?!" Again, no response. Although, this time, with how long the noise had been going on for, the class was curious now. There were only a few classrooms on the floor above them, as most of the other rooms were for storage. Because of that, most of them knew what classes were up there. Two of them were science rooms, and it seemed crazy to think a whole class would cause such a disturbance in them. The others were AP classes. Something weird was definitely going on.


    Ms. Henderson left the classroom through the door at the front of the class and not even ten seconds later, the class heard her scream. The students closest to the door quickly got up to see what was happening. The first one there opened the door, and some of the class was able to see Ms. Henderson frantically running past. That student decided to leave the class to see what was going on and after stumbling a bit, immediately got back up and ran after Ms. Henderson. The other two students who went to the door but stayed in the classroom decided to see what was going on as well. One fell over in a panic and ran after the other two. The other, slower on getting himself together, screamed in terror as he got back into the classroom and shut the door. More students got up and quickly gathered around him to ask what was going on.


    "Jimmy, what''s going on?"


    "The- there''s- ah- !" he could barely get out any words at all, his panic-stricken face seemingly getting even more intense. The anxious students asked again but no clearer response came out of Jimmy''s mouth. However, the class could hear something loudly moving through the hallway outside. One of the students went to the door to open it, and right when Jimmy seemed to scream out for him to not, another student stopped him instead. That student then locked the door and walked back over to Jimmy. He softly rested one arm on Jimmy''s shoulder and took one deep breath. Then he let it out. Then he took in another deep breath. Finally, Jimmy followed suit. After a few repetitions, Jimmy was finally able to speak.


    "Th- there''s bears out there!" Most of the class gasped in surprise. "W- well, they look like bears." The puzzled class wanted to push for clarification but the calming student spoke first.


    "I see. Well, that''s good to know, Jimmy. As a precaution, I have already locked both the doors."


    "O- okay...but what if they try to break in?" Jimmy''s voice was soft, but panic was obviously creeping in again.


    "Y- yeah, what should we do, Clement?" one of the other students asked.


    "Well, we should probably try to barricade the doors right now," Clement responded instantly. Everyone else was stunned by how calmly Clement was acting. Clement went over to one of the desks and started to drag it over to the front classroom door. "We should line up the desks in, hmmmm, maybe make it two rows thick? Yes, that should do it. We can also use some chairs up against the desks just to prevent anything from easily sneaking through underneath. Also, let''s see if we can use anything in the class as a makeshift weapon, at least for some range." The whole class continued to stare as Clement went to bring another desk over. Finally, everyone else began to follow suit.


    Before the first row of desks were lined up, screaming could be heard from the floor below and there was also a single loud thump at the back classroom door. Most of the students froze up for a moment.


    "This is looking pretty good so far," Clement said, ignoring the disturbing sounds. "Say, Jimmy, you said they were not quite bears. Could you elaborate?"


    "Huh? Uh, yeah, I mean, they look a lot like bears, but...kind of different too?"


    "Perhaps an unusual breed or species?" Clement asked.


    "Uh...yeah, I guess?" Another loud thump against the back door.


    "Please, continue," Clement said as he added the first desk to the second row.


    "Um, yeah, they looked like black bears."


    "Were they as big as black bears?"


    "Um, I''m not really sure."


    "Have you ever seen any other bears in real life before?"


    "Yeah, I remember seeing a polar bear in a zoo."


    "Was the bear outside much smaller in size?"


    "Um, yeah, it was definitely smaller." Another thump.


    "Well, black bears usually aren''t as aggressive as other bears and they are also smaller than average. However, judging by your words, the difference you noticed had more to do with than just their size." The other students tolerated the sounds outside and save for a few sobbing and huddled up in a corner and a couple others trying to figure out what they could use as weapons, they continued to create the barricade.


    "Yeah, they looked scarier than a regular black bear. Their eyes were red, and their claws too. There was a bit of red on their fur as well." Jimmy shuddered.


    "But still not that big, though, right?"


    "Uh, yeah, not that big for a bear, I guess." Another thump, the loudest one yet. And this time, followed by a low growl. At this time, one of the students by the windows suddenly started to frantically wave.


    "Hey! Hey!" A couple other students went over and saw she was calling out to someone outside. "Call for help!" And then, right after she said that, she remembered something. "Our phones! They''re in the teacher''s desk!" Almost everyone seemed to change after hearing that. They ran over to the desk to get their phones back but the desk was locked. Then, the class was busy trying to get their phones out with the exception of four students. One of them was the girl by the window who was now trying to shout out about bears in the school. The other three were Clement, Jimmy and one other student who continued to complete the barricade.


    "Jimmy, would you say that there is no way for the bear to squeeze under these desks, or should we put in some chairs underneath to help make sure?" Clement asked.


    "Uh...yeah, I don''t think so, but let''s put in the chairs anyway."


    "Sounds good, Jimmy. Hey, Carlos, do you think you can start bringing the chairs over?" Clement asked of the only other student not trying to break into the teacher''s desk.


    "Sure." Carlos complied and continued on with the work without any desire to go over to that desk. With the screaming from earlier and the other two having run out some time ago, somebody likely already called for help. The only thing that was worth doing with the phones now was to just talk to friends or family, but that wouldn''t keep them safe.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    While still trying to break into the desk, there was another loud thump against the back door and this time, one could see the door was starting to cave in. A couple students started screaming and crying for help. Some others continued trying to break into the desk but the others now rejoined the efforts in building the barricade and finding suitable weapons. Another charge from the creature outside and one could see damage appearing around the door''s hinges. Because this door opened outwards, it wouldn''t be very effective just stacking up weight against the door, but at the same time, it should also be harder to knock down from the outside. If whatever is outside does manage to break down this door, you would have to worry about whether anyone would be strong enough to fend it off, even with a proper weapon.


    They completed the barricade. It was two rows thick and also had some upside down desks placed on top as well to narrow the spots where the creature would try to climb over. Chairs were also thrown underneath as an added precaution. The door was now mostly caved in and would likely only last one or two more charges. Among the ''weapons'' that were gathered, there was a globe, a projector, an assortment of compass needles, textbooks, atlases, a yardstick, and the roll of maps that they pulled off from the front of the class.


    "Alright, I''ll be up in the front," Clement said, grabbing a yard stick. "I think we can hold pretty well with just two or three up here. The rest can throw things from behind us when necessary." With another charge the door was now almost completely knocked down, and the class could finally get a clear look of the creature outside. Just as Jimmy had described, it did look a lot like a black bear, but with ominous red eyes and claws. There were also red tinges of fur around its neck and red streaks that ran down its sides and back. Most of the class instantly recoiled in fear. The largest student in the class stepped up to the front after grabbing the projector.


    "Do you think the school will get mad at me if I use this?"


    "I''ll tell them it was all my fault, Rob" Clement responded. Rob nervously laughed. The second largest student then volunteered as well, picking up a chair as his weapon. "Good pick, Ray." Thinking about it again, a chair probably would be the most optimally balanced, but it obviously would have less range than the yardstick and hit much less harder than the projector (although only someone like Rob would probably be able to actually swing it around).


    With a final charge, the monster finally knocked down the door, but a close look would show that it was already looking a bit tired from all that exertion. The monster approached the barricade, and fortunately for the class, no other monsters followed in behind it. The rest must have made their way throughout the rest of the school.


    The monster looked below the desks and brought a paw to one of the chairs underneath. It was smaller than the average bear but still didn''t look quite small enough to properly squeeze under the desks. But, it would be a problem if it tried to break the barricade by knocking the desks from underneath. Clement stabbed at the bear with the yardstick when it looked to be pondering for too long. Seemingly no damage was dealt but it did irritate the creature. It brought its fore paws up onto the desks and Ray thrust his chair at it. The bear swatted the chair back and Ray lost his balance. The bear inched over some more and Clement thrust the yardstick into its face.


    It was a solid connection that seemed to make the bear recoil for an instant. But it was only an instant. Clement proceeded to continue his barrage of thrusts at the bear''s head, but the bear suddenly retreated out of range and stood up on its hindquarters. It lunged itself forward. Both Ray and Clement attempted to intercept the attack, but the force of the lunge knocked both of them back. The bear crashed on top of the barricade and one of the upside down desks fell off. Rob threw down the projector as hard as he could onto the bear before it could pick itself up and this blow did seem to deal some damage. The monster howled a bit and one could see what looked to be black blood trickling off its body. This really wasn''t a bear. Ray went to pick up the broken projector but the monster suddenly thrashed around on the desk and a paw knocked him back.


    Then, the students in the back started to throw their textbooks and atlases at the monster. Although a lot of them did connect, none seems to do any damage. Clement and Ray got back up. Clement signalled for them to stop throwing and then he went in again, this time swinging down the yard stick as hard as he could against the monster''s head. There was a cracking sound. The yardstick broke. Ray desperately bashed the chair against it but after receiving the blow, it pushed itself off the desks and was now on the other side of the barricade. Ray''s bravery faded instantly and he shrunk back. Clement tightly gripped the broken yardstick.


    Then, Carlos suddenly ran over and threw a giant map onto the monster, obscuring its vision. As it started to thrash about to get it off, Carlos then started sliding over some of the upside down desks at it. The rest of the students also started throwing things at it again. When it looked like the monster was about to tear through the giant map, Carlos threw another on top of it. Ray regained his courage and started to throw chairs at the beast. Although difficult to see as Carlos continued to throw maps onto it, the monster was clearly thrashing less violently before, the accumulated damage draining its stamina.


    However, continue to thrash it did, and eventually Carlos ran out of maps. The objects the rest of the students could throw at it had also dwindled down greatly in size and number. The monster tore through the last map and angrily growled, black blood dripping down its face from the repeated blows. Rob was back up, and alongside Clement, they were now holding the last two chairs on this side of the barricade. Well, the last two that weren''t within immediate striking distance of the monster. Clement glanced over to Rob, and he nervously nodded. The monster took a single step forward. The majority of the class pressed themselves against the walls. The monster prepared to lunge once more, but before it did, Clement charged at it with his chair, and Rob followed. Clement smashed it into the monster''s face while Rob hit it in the side. The monster completed the lunge anyways, although with much less force than the first one.


    Nonetheless, Clement was flung backwards and smacked into the wall behind him. Then, the monster turned to Rob, who had dropped the chair during its lunge. It had one eye closed now, but still looked far from dead. It took a few quick steps towards Rob who desperately took out one of the desks forming the barricade to place it between the two of them. Panicking and thinking one would not be enough, he started to grab another one as the monster closed the distance. It knocked the desk back into the barricade, but before it went for Rob, Carlos suddenly came in from the side of the monster''s blinded eye and stabbed into it with a compass needle.


    The needle went in deep, and to everyone''s surprise, right before the monster attempted to bat Carlos away, he leapt onto its back and pounded in the compass needle all the way in. The monster suddenly spasmed, and then immediately afterwards crashed onto the ground, where it lay motionless. Black blood oozed out of its eye and stained Carlos'' hands. Then, just as the reality of the situation was about to set in for everyone, the monster''s entire body suddenly turned into a mass of black vapour that just as suddenly disappeared into thin air, along with all the black blood. Carlos, now lying on the ground, seemed to be staring in a daze.


    "That was great, Carlos. Truly amazing!" Clement, of course, was the first to speak up. Carlos snapped out of his daze and picked himself back up. As a delayed response, the rest of class erupted into cheers and gathered around Carlos. Clement then went over to Rob to see if he was okay, and the rest of the class took turns congratulating the main players of the defense. As the class continued to celebrate, Clement carefully began climbing over the barricade. Carlos pulled himself away and pulled back a desk from the barricade to join him on the other side. The class quieted down.


    Clement poked his head outside the back doorway and scanned the hallways. There was no screaming or loud thumping from the floor above but one could still feel vibrations below them. Clement came back in and took a look at everyone. Carlos came over to him.


    "I do not see any others in the hallway outside, but just to be safe, let''s re-form the barricade." The class silently agreed and as Clement and Carlos were about to come back through the gap there was an incredibly loud sound coming from above. The whole room shook, and this time, you could see the ceiling crack. Suddenly, part of the ceiling opened up and something very large crashed into the classroom, smashing several desks into pieces where it fell. Just like the monster before, it had bear-like features with black fur and red patterning in similar places, but it also had two major differences. One, on its front paws, it looked to be wearing some sort of armour with red blades coming out from the end. Or perhaps its front paws were simply made of metal? Second, it was bigger, much bigger. Whereas the earlier monster was around the size of a black bear, this one looked to be at least twice the size of a polar bear.


    Carlos started thinking about what to do and Clement was thinking about what to say. Before either could do anything, The giant monster swung his paw at them. It swatted Clement away like he was a fly and although the blades barely made contact with Carlos, long cuts across the right side of face opened up. His head turned from the indirect force and his body twisted into the barricade. Carlos'' bloody face slammed into a desk and there was the intense pain of both his head pounding and his right cheek and ear burning. However, this was a miraculous result compared to what happened to Carlos. To put it simply, he was dead.


    Only a few of the students screamed in terror. The rest were scared beyond even that. The monster looked at his bloody paw and then at the class. Unlike the monster before it, it did not show an ounce of anger. If anything, it almost seemed bored. It looked at Clement''s remains in a way an exterminator might look in the middle of work.


    Carlos stood back up and soaked the blood on his face into his sleeve. Then, he saw something show up in his vision, and it wasn''t blood.


    New Skill acquired: Power Strike D


    New Skill acquired: Mentalism B


    Skill upgraded: Insight D to Insight C


    Skill upgraded: Mental Resistance C to Mental Resistance B


    For Carlos, this wasn''t the first time seeing those words. They first appeared alongside a sudden burning pain right before the classroom shook. He didn''t entirely get it, but this was likely one of those scenarios where someone gains rpg-esque skills and abilities to deal with the sudden appearance of monsters. This was also reinforced earlier after he even gained stat points from killing the previous monster. Carlos stayed calm with his Mental Resistance skill and carefully analyzed what the next course of action would be to defeat this new monster.


    His perception of time slowed down and his Insight skill silently screamed at him. There was a 0% chance of defeating this monster. Carlos calmly accepted that and then thought only of how to save as many people as he could. No chance of directly saving anyone else without dying in the process. Carlos did not accept this as calmly, but tolerated it. Fine, how can I save myself so that I can try to help them later.


    Because the monster was in front of the open doorway, he would have to escape through the other door. He would have to unlock it and then run out. But, he would be in full view and vulnerable to attacks the whole time. The Insight skill reminded him that there would be a 0% chance of dodging a direct attack. Then, what am I supposed to do?


    It is possible to use a student as a human shield to increase the chance of survival. Absolutely not. With the use of the Mentalism skill, it is possible to fool the monster into thinking the class will attack it, drawing its attention towards them and increasing the chance of survival. No. Through use of Mentalism skill, it is possible to fool the monster into believing you are the lowest level threat, which would allow escape after the monster prioritizes the other students. That''s basically the same thing, what else? Impossible criteria. It is impossible to survive in the current situation unless another student is sacrificed.


    Carlos remained frozen for a moment as the rest of the class remained terrified. It had been some time now since the monster''s initial attack, but this was not because it had no intentions of continuing. Everyone in the class just seemed so weak to it that it was wondering where to begin. Like the camel who could not decide between two equally sized meals, it was waiting for any significant difference to occur before beginning its rampage.


    As Carlos'' indecision continued, one of the other students finally made a move. Rob picked up the broken yardstick and threw it. It would have done absolutely no damage, but the monster swatted it away anyways. It looked at Rob and then seemed to grin. The Insight skill screamed at Carlos to make his move to escape once the monster went for Rob. Carlos begrudgingly agreed. However, before the monster made its move, two red streaks of light suddenly came in through the open doorway and pierced the monster in the side of its chest and neck. No black blood spilled out, as if the wounds were cauterized instantly. From the other side of the monster, the light briefly came to a stop, and one could see they were a pair of glowing red orbs. Then, the two orbs flew at the monster again, digging themselves deep into its body as the red trails appeared behind them. Then, the entire top half of the monster exploded in a flash of red light. Tiny pieces of flesh, fur and flood were launched outwards. Only the hindlegs and bottom torso remained, which soon turned into black vapour just like the monster before.


    The entire class was stunned in silence, including Carlos, who''s Insight skill seemed to have been deactivated, either from overuse or overloaded from the impossibility of trying to appraise the current situation. A student quickly came into the classroom from the open doorway.


    "Ah, you''re okay!"


    I see, so the real hero has finally arrived.

 La Cucaracha (Part 1)

    Date: March 12, 2020 - 3:38 pm


    Location: Colombo


    On the balcony of a mansion facing the sun, three individuals were seated around a small round table, two men and one woman. The woman wore a pair of sunglasses and looked towards the sun, clearly ignoring the two men. Just as one of them was about to speak up, the woman suddenly tilted her head a bit and squeezed her upper arm and the balcony shook slightly. The two men looked at each other for a moment and waited to see if the shaking would come again. It did not, but as one of them was about to speak up again, the woman spoke first.


    "Woah, looks like something is going on over there." The two men looked at each other again before getting up to see what she was looking at. They couldn''t really make anything out unusual in the distance, but they thought they could hear something. "Sounds like a party is going on." The two men weren''t sure about that. "Alright, let''s see who''s making all that noise in Madrazo territory."


    The woman opened the door to leave the balcony and the two men followed. Inside the next room were a dozen men wearing casual clothes and armed with assault rifles. She went to the table to the room to arm herself with a pistol and her own assault rifle. Then, she picked up two other pistols and tossed them back to the men. "Here are your guns back. You know, you should really carry some more." The men holstered their respective pistols as the woman continued walking to the exit.


    "Sierra, Alejandro and I didn''t hear anything. We should really continue talking about what we came here to discuss."


    "Not my fault the two of you are two old to hear anything properly."


    "Sierra, please listen to me and Diego, even if there is something going on, it is minor at most. Our men can handle it while we keep the discussion going. Your father would want this of you as well."


    "Yeah, not interested at all." She put on a vest to carry additional ammunition. "Let''s go." About half of the armed men immediately followed suit. The rest glanced over at Alejandro and Diego. The two looked at each other again. They nodded and they all left together.


    The fifteen of them got into four cars, with three of them following after Sierra. Just as they left the mansion gates, the sounds of commotion were unmistakable. It was some mix of fire, screaming and gunshots. Honestly, not that unusual of a sound throughout the city, but certainly strange for it to happen so close to the Madrazo estate.


    They drove towards the epicentre of the noise and after travelling two blocks, they saw the back of a man firing a pistol into an alleyway. He was shouting out obscenities when he noticed the cars approaching him from the side. He called for help just as a bear-like monster lunged at him and forced him to the ground, tearing into his throat as it did. Sierra was the first to get out of the car. She immediately sprayed at the beast with her gun and it instantly slumped on top of the man as it fell dead. Then, it suddenly turned into quickly vanishing, black vapour.


    "Stat points increased," Sierra muttered under her breath as the men gathered around her.


    "What the hell was that?" Alejandro asked.


    "A dungeon monster," she replied. Before a follow-up question could be asked, several more monsters came pouring out of the alleyway. Again, Sierra was the first to fire and she successfully downed another one of them before the rest opened fire. It was a one-sided massacre. They made short work of the monsters and Sierra casually made her way over to the dead man outside the alley. Inside the alley were the bodies of at least a dozen more men, some of their bodies on fire. She took a quick sniff and figured some Molotov cocktails were probably used. The carnage in this alley was more than expected, but still not that unusual. What was unusual though, was a glowing red portal that was there, about three feet off the ground. The portal was opaque, but looking around it, you could see more bodies and fires forming a trail on the end of the alley.


    "What the hell is going on?" Diego asked this time. Sierra walked around the portal and listened closely. She readied her gun once more. Another monster suddenly appeared from the other end and she immediately fired at it. However, perhaps due to the distance, the monster suddenly jumped away, only taking a few shots. Sierra retrained her sights on it but the gun was out of ammo. Ah, she always was a bit too trigger happy. As she went to calmly change out the magazine, the monster let out a loud howl. As it did, the rest of the men filled it with bullets, which promptly clattered onto the ground when it turned into vapour like the rest.


    "Sierra, our men are going to head back to the cars to get some more ammo and weapons. Do you want to come back, too?" Alejandro asked. Sierra looked at him with a bemused expression.


    "I guess despite all your panicking earlier about these weird sights, as long as you know bullets work on them there''s nothing to be worried about." Sierra spoke more akin to as if she were talking to herself than actually engaging in conversation.


    "Right..."


    "You all can go back," Sierra said, this time motioning towards them, "I will see what else is around here."


    "Miss Madrazo, that''s dangerous," one of the assault rifle men said.


    "Then you all better hurry up and come back to support me," she said, as she made her way to the other end of the alley. Six of the men looked at each other and they quickly decided that three of them would follow after her while the other three restocked. They quickly went to the end of the alley they came in from, following Alejandro and Diego''s men.


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    One of the assault rifle men took the lead from Sierra and quickly poked his head out. He signalled that the path was clear and they continued. The path was clear of all signs of life, but there was plenty of evidence left behind of a bloody struggle. They continued onwards, but just as they were about to reach the next branch in the path, Sierra suddenly ordered them to stop. She turned around, and then looked forward again.


    "Let''s go back," she said. Before they could make it back to their first alley, a swarm of monsters started pouring out of the red portal. Just as they started to open fire on them, another large group of monsters came in from the path they retreated from. Several of them let out louds howls as they charged at the four of them. "Thin out the ones coming from the portal; we''ll take that path out." The men frantically gunned down the monsters coming out of the portal, but they all needed to reload. There were only three of them remaining in their way, so Sierra decided to advance with just her pistol. She fired a couple rounds into one of their faces, killing it. She continued to move forward while shooting at a second one. This one was more nimble and suddenly lunged at her, avoiding lethal shots. She dodged hard into a wall with unexpected speed, and fired a couple rounds into the side of its face as it slammed into the ground, barely missing her. The third came was not merely idling though, and was already upon her after the second one was downed. With another unexpectedly dexterous manoeuvre, she rolled to the side and fired another couple rounds into the monster''s face as he turned around to face.


    There was no time to celebrate. Just as the assault rifle men finished reloading, the monsters behind them had caught up. They unloaded their magazines into the ones in front of them, but only one of them could calmly aim at their heads while the other let out a frenzied spray. The monsters lunged forward and ripped into the chest of one of Sierra''s men. Sierra killed the monster with a couple headshots but he was already bleeding heavily. The other panicking man''s aim deteriorated even further when his ally fell and another monster instantly closed the distance to him. This time, though, Sierra dashed back towards them. Just as the monster was making contact with him, her pistol was making contact with its skull and she unloaded some more rounds in quick succession. Sierra grabbed the man''s shoulder.


    "Get back!" she yelled at him. He obeyed and backed off behind her. She then heard the final man''s gun click. Out of ammo. In front of them was still at least another twenty of them. She unloaded the rest of her pistol''s magazine, but that only killed two more of them, one of them with the assistance of the remainder of the panicked man''s assault rifle. Instead of reloading, the other man picked up his dead ally''s gun and continued shooting, also killing one more. There were still seventeen more to go, with only a few of them injured by stray bullets.


    "Miss, please make your escape, we will block them as long as we can," the calm man said. The panicked man gripped his empty gun and grimly nodded.


    "Yeah, not interested in that at all! Both of you, back the fuck away!" Sierra suddenly charged at the monsters with her empty pistol. Everyone, including even the monsters, looked surprised. She ran right up to one of them and suddenly smashed the butt of her pistol into its eye. There was a loud crack and black blood gushed out as the monster keeled over. "So, this is what 21 Strength can do," she said, also seemingly surprised by the outcome. The monsters turned towards her and started to surround her. Sierra continued to take the initiative and and smashed her pistol into another one''s face, killing it in one blow. However, the recoil also damaged her pistol. She slammed into the skull of one more monster, result in mutual destruction. As if seizing a collective opportunity, three monsters lunged at her at once. She dodged two of them, but the third one slammed into her. It knocked her to the ground and tried to snap its jaws at her. She chopped its throat with enough force to cause it to gag and roll over. Then, she stomped on its head to kill it. The notice of even more stat points gained seemed to energize Sierra. At first, she was thinking she had gone crazy, but it looks like she really has been gaining superhuman levels of power.


    Just as she was starting to think that she could really deal with the rest of them by herself, she heard the sound of gunfire cutting across the alley. Several bullets punched into the sides of a few of the monsters, but was far from incapacitating them. Just as she was wondering what was with the crappy fire support, she saw the bodies of her last two on the ground, blood oozing out from multiple gunshot wounds. At the end of the alley, she saw Alejandro, Diego, and their men. Only those eight. The rest of her three men were nowhere to be seen.


    "Where the fuck are you aiming at?!" she yelled at them. Without a word, Alejandro motioned for his men to shoot again. They did, and this time, they aimed at Sierra. She tried to dodge at the last second, but the monsters restricted her movement, and several bullets struck her in the leg, back, and arm. Not missing its chance, one of the monsters pounced on top of her. "Alejandro, you son of a bitch!" Her bullet wounds were shallow and she still mustered the strength to bring out an arm from underneath the monster to choke its throat. Its strength started to fade and she pushed it off of her.


    "Sierra, I am surprised by how well you can suddenly fight. You were always one to pick fights, but it wasn''t like you were that amazing at fighting." Sierra turned around to face Alejandro and another monster attempted to tackle her. She punched it hard in the face, but the momentum from the charge still made it fall into her.


    "Do you have any idea what it means to betray me?!"


    "You speak as if you''re the only one who has been wronged."


    "Alejandro, let''s just finish this. There''s no need to mock her like this," said Diego.


    "No, she needs to know." Sierra pushed the monster off of her and crushed its eye with her thumb. "Sierra, you don''t know the first thing about leading. It was a mistake for your father to have designated you as his successor."


    "Shut your fucking mouth! My grandfather and father built up the Madrazos! I am Sierra Madrazo!" she screamed out as smacked her fist into another monster''s face. Immediately after, a monster swiped at her from behind, its claws slashing through her vest.


    "That is indeed who you are. And if you had just simply wanted to live off of their legacy, it would have been fine. But you had to insist on taking over full control of the organization." Sierra jammed headbutted the monster who slashed at while jamming her thumbs into both of its eyes. "You are in love with violence! With you as the head, the fragile peace we have with the other families would break apart. And what about the police? You keep insisting on picking fights instead of using common business sense and sticking to our traditional cooperation."


    "I don''t think handing out bribes every week and letting them have their way with some of us..." Sierra kneed one of the monsters in the side, "is what we should do!"


    "Alejandro," Diego pleaded with him again, "Just stop." Alejandro shook his head dismissively.


    "There is no use in continuing on with this." Alejandro took out a Molotov cocktail and lit it. Everyone else did the same. They ran a few steps closer before throwing them into the crowd of monsters. The fur of the monsters caught fire, but surprisingly, seemed to only make them angrier instead of actually injuring them. As such, they paid them no attention and remained focused on Sierra alone. Alejandro and the rest of them left without doing anything else, perhaps to avoid doing anything more that might finally provoke the monsters to attack them instead of the closest target.


    The monsters surrounded Sierra even tighter, and after beating another monster to death, the fire unsurprisingly spread to her clothes. Even as the flames began to burn at her flesh, even as the other monsters continued to bite and slash at her, opening new wounds, she continued to fight them to the death. In her persistent struggle, she brought it down to only three monsters. Also, due to her clothes having mostly burnt away, she was also no longer on fire, although there were numerous burns and cuts all across body, especially on her hands which she used to put out the flames. Much of her long, black hair had also burned away. Nevertheless, she smiled. They thought she would be a goner, but here she was, still fighting, and with even more stat points gained. In addition to that, she even increased the levels of some of her Skills.


    Just as Sierra started smiling again, looking like a deranged madwoman covered in blood and burns, the area around her shook as the red portal flashed. Then, a giant bear-like monster with metallic front paws ending in red blades, forced itself out of the portal and landed on the ground with a heavy thud. Sierra''s smile faded slightly, and in her brief instant of distraction, one of the smaller monsters charged at her and knocked her into a wall. The other smaller monsters also moved in, getting in a few smacks with their front paws. The giant monster looked away from the pathetic sight and ran out of the alley, looking for something else to hunt.


    After the giant monster left, Sierra grabbed the throat of one monster with her right hand and grabbed the face of another with her left. She squeezed with all her might and forced them both onto the ground. She finished them both off with hard kicks afterwards and glared at the remaining one. She promptly made short work of the last one and then collapsed onto the ground. Just you wait...I''m going to get you too, she thought as she lost consciousness.

 La Cucaracha (Part 2)

    Date: March 12, 2020 - 4:26 pm


    Location: Colombo


    The police eventually sent a couple squad cars in order to check on the situation in Madrazo territory. Almost all the monsters had been dealt with by now, with the last few straggling monsters being dealt with by the police. Unsure of just how many there truly were left, though, they communicated the need for reinforcements and even the SWAT team was dispatched and currently on the way. Alejandro met with the police to discuss the situation.


    "Were you idiots trying to start some kind of zoo?" one of the officers asked.


    "You really think these things are ours?! Did you see how much damage they caused?!"


    "Wouldn''t be the first time people like you tried to get into some new sort of dangerous business," another officer commented.


    "We had absolutely nothing to do with these monsters!" Alejandro insisted. One of the officers was still skeptical, but continued on with his questions.


    "So, where did you first encounter these...monsters?"


    "In an alley, about two blocks from the Madrazo residence."


    "That so? What a coincidence."


    "We had nothing to do with the monster attack!"


    "Right, so you''re saying someone else living in that area brought all these things here?"


    "No, they probably all came out of the red portal."


    "...Red portal?" The officer paused to wave his hands in front of Alejandro''s eyes.


    "I''m not drunk!"


    "High?"


    "No!"


    "Diego and the rest of my men saw it, too." They nodded in agreement. That hardly made it more convincing for the officer.


    "Right. Did anyone else see this portal?"


    "Yes, but they all died to the monsters."


    "How convenient. Anyways, who are these other people?"


    "There were a lot; there were bodies all through that alley and the neighbouring roads." The officer let out a heavy sigh about all the paperwork he''d have to do.


    "If it''s just some random people or other low-level thugs, just give me the list of names later. I''ll call over a forensics team to investigate later tonight." The officer just could not be bothered to care about any of those people.


    "Actually, we suffered quite the terrible loss."


    "Oh, really, I''m so sorry to hear that," the officer said without an ounce of sympathy.


    "The daughter of our former head and her guards were all tragically killed by the monsters." The officer paused in writing down his notes.


    "Sierra Madrazo is dead?" he asked, while looking over the rest of Alejandro''s men. They were all expressionless with the exception of Diego who clearly looked distressed.


    "Yes, the daughter of my dear cousin was killed by those monsters!" Alejandro lied.


    "...Well, shit happens," the officer finally said, as he continued writing his notes. The rest of the officers however were starting to talk amongst themselves. At that moment though, they could faintly hear the sounds of something large coming towards them. One by one, they also stopped to listen. Then, smashing right through a police barricade by one of the roads, the giant bear-like monster came charging through.


    "What the fuck is that?!" one of the other officers exclaimed.


    "Bring it down!" The officer commanded as he dropped his notepad and pulled out his pistol. All the officers fired at it, but it was as if the thing was made of Kevlar. The bullets impacted its body, but then fell to the ground, flattened. It swiped at the nearest officers in quick succession, flinging their corpses several yards away. Alejandro started to back away as he commanded his men to also shoot at it. They complied, but their bullets were no more effective. The remaining men tried to make their retreat while shooting, but the monster wasn''t slowed in the slightest, and continued to mow down more of them, officer and gangster alike.


    Then, two SWAT team vans arrived on the scene. They were probably just as surprised by this monster as anyone, but they smoothly exited the vans and prepared to engage. Alejandro and Diego continued to retreat back to their cars while more of the men attempted to hold the monster back. The SWAT team threw tear gas canisters at the monster, which did seem to irritate it. It let out a loud howl, many times more terrifying than its smaller counterparts, and charged at the first SWAT team member. It crushed that person into the ground, and then swiped at a second one. Its red claws easily cut through their body armour, and the corpse fell to the ground in pieces.


    Two SWAT team members closed the distance and blasted at the monster with shotguns. One of them managed to land a blast onto its face and this made the monster throw its head back. But, only for a second, as it quickly swiped at them both, killing them instantly. Most of the SWAT team members continued to fire with assault rifles while a couple finally left the vans, each with a grenade launcher. They fired at the giant monster and both of them connected. The explosions took out small chunks of flesh from the giant monster and singed its black fur, but did not deal any critical damage. The remaining SWAT team members continued to provide covering fire to allow time for the grenade launcher members to reload. The monster completely ignored the ones with guns. It dove right at the first person with a grenade launcher and slammed its front paw through his chest. Then, he quickly whipped to the side to take out the other one. The second one barely managed to reload in time and fired at point blank, fully prepared to sacrifice himself in the process. The monster brought one metallic paw right in front of the launcher to take the blast. Unlike the monster''s sides, this explosion didn''t even dent the metal paw as it then proceeded to slam down on top of the man. The rest of the SWAT team fought to the end, which was only for about ten more seconds.


    Alejandro and Diego got into a car with their two remaining guards. They had just finally gotten the engine started when they heard the sound of an explosion over by the SWAT team''s location. Alejandro peered over there and saw the giant monster finally take a bit of damage.


    "Explosions actually hurt the damn thing. Diego, do we have the stuff in here or was it in another car?"


    "Um...." Without waiting for a response, Alejandro turned to the non-driver guard.


    "Is there a briefcase under the back seats?!" The guard checked and did find a briefcase. "Good pass it over here." He handed over the briefcase. "And you, what are you waiting for? Get us the fuck out of here?!" The driver silently complied and they started to drive away.


    "M- maybe we should do something?" Diego asked.


    "Like what? Either the SWAT team has it covered or they don''t. And if they don''t have it covered, we''re gonna need more men!" Alejandro opened up the briefcase, revealing six grenades. "And more of these, too."


    "They could help out."


    "Yeah, but I''m not going to use them in front of the fucking police, Diego?! This is still one of those things those guys still don''t want us to deal in!"


    "Where to?" the driver asked as the car was about to reach an intersection at the end of the block.


    "Go back to the main residence."


    "Not your place, Alejandro?" Diego asked.


    "That is my place now!" Alejandro shouted. "It was always my place!" Nobody else in the car said anything as the driver completed the turn. "Also, we have more grenades there,"


    "I don''t remember Sierra doing that," said Deigo.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    "We had an armoury there, me and Pedro. The first grenades we traded in are stored there, right before he died. Just never had the chance to get them back yet because Sierra wouldn''t let me in." Repetitive shaking could suddenly be felt. They all looked back and saw nothing. "Speed the fuck up!" Alejandro shouted, already anticipating what was to come. The driver floored it just as the giant monster came onto the road. It whipped its head around to look directly at them and started to chase them down. "Faster!"


    "I''m already going as fast as we can," the driver responded. A block later, and the monster was clearly starting to close the distance.


    "How is it so fast?!" Alejandro screamed out his rhetorical question. Alejandro took out one of the grenades and pulled out the pin. He threw it at the beast, but the throw was done too quickly as it exploded behind the monster. "Fuck!" He pulled the pin off another grenade and waited a bit longer this time. He threw the grenade behind them and this time it exploded right near one of its hind legs. The beast momentarily lost its balance and smashed into a car parked on the side. "Yes! Take that you fucking monster!" The driver slowed to complete a turn right as the monster led out a tremendous howl. The driver''s movements were paralyzed for less than a second, but it was enough to prevent him from completing a clean turn,causing him to drive over the curb and almost hit a store front.


    "S- sorry, sir! My hands froze up!" Alejandro slammed his hand on the dashboard.


    "Just fucking keep going!" The monster had recovered and renewed its chase. Alejandro pulled the pin off a third and fourth grenade. He threw them out after waiting a tinier bit longer than last time, and this time instead of rolling it onto the ground, he brought his upper body out the window to throw it at the monster, aiming for its front. He chucked them at the monster, and smiled, expecting to see at least one of them blow up square in its face. Suddenly, the monster paused its run and swiped at the grenades with its front paws. One of the grenades blew up against one paw while the other one blew up a bit later as it was smacked into the ground to the side. Alejandor stared at the monster, mouth agape. The monster seemed to smile.


    "Holy shit!" the guard in the back exclaimed, finally expressing some emotion. The car gained some distance, but the monster quickly resumed the chase, and a block later, it was less than thirty feet away. Alejandro fumbled around with the last two grenades but didn''t pull the pin, sweat rolling down his forehead.


    "Sh- shoot at it! Do something!" Alejandro commanded. The guard in the back picked up his assault rifle and fired at it but to no avail.


    "We are coming up on the Madrazo residence soon. What should I do?" the driver asked.


    "What kind of question is that?! Just keep driving and try to lose this thing!" They were coming up near the gates when the monster''s claw slashed through the trunk of the car. It sliced right through the metal and into one of the back tires as well. The car violently lurched from the impact and the car smashed right into the front gates. The airbags deployed, but the driver was still knocked out from the impact. The back guard was still shooting at the monster at the time of the crash and his body was badly battered as he was flung up and down with his torso through the open window. He weakly tried to recover, his face and hands on the road, and legs still lying against the open window and on the back seat. The last thing he saw was the monster smashing its paw onto his head. Diego and Alejandro escaped out of the car, both disoriented. Alejandro had also brought out the two grenades with him. The monster, exuding all the aura of an apex predator, casually smashed its paw through the driver''s seat while staring at the two men fleeing from the vehicle. The giant monster moved towards them and Diego stumbled, falling to the ground. Blood trickled down the side of his head as he desperately tried to get back up, but his muscles just couldn''t muster the strength and coordination.


    "A - ah...please, stay back!" he pleaded towards the monster. The monster gave Diego a quick, bored look before focusing its gaze at Alejandro, who had continued to run away, still clutching at his grenades. "A -Alejandro, help!" Diego called out to him. Alejandro pulled off the pin from one of the grenades as he continued to run away. The monster cautiously moved towards Alejandro. Alejandro grinded his teeth as he silently counted in his head. He threw the grenade and the monster batted it away. Honestly speaking, the timing and aim was pretty good. If the monster had just stood there, it would have exploded right near its head.


    "F- fu- You goddamn- h- how dare you?!" Alejandro sputtered out his incoherent insults. The monster moved in closer but did not attack, as if inviting Alejandro to try his little game for the last time. Then, it suddenly stopped, and tilted his head ever so slightly, as if looking past Alejandro. Alejandro didn''t notice as he continued to try to retreat while keeping his eyes on the monster. When he finally looked around, he found himself almost running into a half-naked woman standing on the road.


    "Ah, lucky me. To think I''d find all my targets first thing after waking up," Sierra said with a wicked smile.


    "Huh? W- what?!" Alejandro looked as if he had just seen a ghost. She was covered in blood and burns, but strangely enough, the wounds looked to be mostly healed aside from scarring, and she certainly was not bleeding at the moment. Sierra suddenly grabbed Alejandro by the throat. She was using much less than her full strength, but Alejandro dropped his last grenade as he grabbed at her hand, trying to free himself so he could breathe.


    "No...that would be too easy," Sierra said as she let him go.


    "S- Sierra! Y- you!"


    "Yeah?" The monster growled. Alejandro whipped back around, and the gravity of the situation seemed to completely incapacitate his ability to speak.


    "U - uh..." he barely let out.


    "S- Sierra, help!" Diego shamelessly begged, still on the ground. Sierra smiled as she looked around before picking up the grenade.


    "Oh...I''ll help," she said. Alejandro looked at her with confusion. Suddenly, Sierra kicked him in the kneecap, crushing it. He let out a miserable howl of pain. She then repeated her act on the other kneecap. The howling continued. The monster narrowed its eyes and glared at her, as if angered by her interfering with its prey.


    "H- how is this helping?!" Diego cried out.


    "I''m helping myself to my revenge!" Sierra replied joyfully as she started approaching the giant monster. It growled at her. "You think I''m not good enough for you?" she asked it. Diego was stunned by this development. Sierra had always loved getting into fights, but how could she be acting like this in front of that beast? It was a hypocritical thought as he had asked for her help in the first place. The monster looked at the grenade in Sierra''s hand as it too began to close the distance between them. Sierra put the grenade in the one remaining pocket of her tattered vest as they continued to approach each other, both of them full of confidence in their inevitable victory.


    Finally, the instant Sierra came in striking distance, it swiped at her. It was a fast blow that had already instantly killed so many others before they could react, but Sierra simply evaded it with the help of her Evasion skill. The monster was a little surprised, but quickly swiped again with the other paw. She easily dodged this as well and countered with a punch to the side of its front leg. The blow seemed to deal no damage and the monster proceeded to try to slam its body into her. She narrowly avoided it and then closed in to punch it square in the face. Its head trembled ever so slightly before it proceeded to then try and bite her. She avoided the bite but remained in range of its paw swipes. She evaded the paw swipes and then suddenly dashed forward, striking it in the face again. Its head got knocked back slightly, but then it quickly snapped its jaws at her again. She rolled under the monster and came out from its side. The monster turned around while trying to bat her away with its front leg and she dodged under it again, striking it under the chin. His head flew back a bit from the impact, but yet again, it quickly recovered. Sierra evaded all the way back to a safe distance.


    Sierra wore a slightly irked expression. She dealt some heavy hits to its head, but it barely looked hurt at all. Using her Evasion skill, she could continue to dodge it, but there was a limit to how long she could maintain it. She could clearly outmanoeuvre it, but the difference in strength was massive. She had two different ideas on how to get around this. And no, neither of them involved simply running away and letting more police or even soldiers to come in to deal with the situation. If there was a chance to win by risking her life, she''d rather do that.


    Her first idea was using the Power Strike skill. She could use up mana in order to deal a much more powerful blow. However, her Evasion skill also used mana so if she used up all her mana for one blow and still failed to kill it or if she missed, she would no longer be fast enough to dodge its attacks. The second idea was a variation of the first idea, and had a lot more risks, but if it were carried out successfully, would be more likely to finish it off.


    The more time she wasted on thinking, the lower the chance of success so she made her choice and pulled out the grenade. She pulled the pin and dashed towards the giant monster. The giant monster seemed to be surprised by this action, but it held its ground and attacked normally when Sierra entered its range again. Sierra dodged forward and punched it in the face with her free hand. After slightly recoiling, it repeated its bite attack. Sierra just barely avoided its jaws and punched it in the side of the face. Its jaws opened up a bit more from the impact and Sierra quickly tossed the grenade into its mouth. The monster instantly realized what was happening as the grenade entered its mouth and it did two things. First, it prepared to open its mouth again to let the grenade drop back out, and second, it swung one of its paws in front of it, in order to prevent the explosion from hitting its face.


    Sierra expected this so she used a small amount of her mana in order to deal a quick Power Strike under its chin. The added strength ensured that the impact would keep its mouth shut long enough. However, because she did not dodge, the paw that the monster brought forward would finally be able to slash at her. The swing was also already coming in before the blow, so even if the impact could daze the creature for an instant, the momentum would continue to carry forward to where she was. Sierra attempted to dash out from under the side of the monster after dealing the Power Strike in order to avoid as much of the red claws as possible. She barely had time to do much and the claws had just begun to dig into her back as the grenade exploded in the monster''s mouth, blowing off its lower jaw. The explosion also caused a slight shift in the monster''s body and the claws did not cleanly come down from the top of her back and through her chest. With the aid of her Layered Defense skill, the claws tore right along her back, but did not slice through her vertebrae or organs as she successfully jumped out from underneath the creature.


    It was still a serious blow to her, though, and it also broke through the damage threshold of her Layered Defense skill, causing a temporary drop to her Defense stat. She stumbled onto the ground next to the fallen monster. However, the monster started to twitch. Sierra quickly picked herself back up, blood flowing down her back and thighs. She went back to the front of the creature. It was still only twitching, and yet to get back up. In addition to its missing lower jaw, Sierra could see the left side of its upper jaw was also missing, and black blood oozed out from the roof of its mouth and around its left eye. She grabbed its face with one hand to keep it still and spent an extra couple seconds to use up the rest of her mana and smashed her fist right through its injured left eye. Her entire fist and half her forearm went through the eye socket. The giant monster''s body shuddered one last time as the front paw that was lifted up to swing down on her one last time fell to the ground, narrowly missing her. Then, the entire body turned into black mist-like vapour just like the others.


    Because of her lowered Defense, smashing through the monster''s skull actually broke her hand, but that was a minor issue, all things considered. She looked around and saw that Alejandro was no longer screaming, probably having passed out from the pain. Or dead. On the other side was Diego, who was also unconscious now, probably from the head injury he took when he fell onto the road earlier. Finally, there was one more thing she saw. A delivery van had just driven onto the road. It stopped a bit away from the wreckage of Alejandro''s car, but the driver called out to her.


    "Hello! I- is everything okay here?!" Instead of remarking on his stupid question, Sierra slowly made her way to the van, holding her broken hand with her other hand while also grimacing slightly from the burning pain of the long cuts across her back. Perhaps it was because the adrenaline rush was ending, but it was getting quite difficult for her to stay standing. The delivery van driver decided to drive up next to Sierra.


    "Hey," Sierra said, placing her unbroken hand on his door, "you got any...bandages?" Now that the driver could see her up close, his expression became very concerned.


    "Oh my god! What happened to you?" The delivery man took out his cell phone to call for an ambulance.


    "Ah, not much...just a bunch of bastards trying to kill me..." Sierra struggled to stay lucid. The delivery man paused.


    "Sh- should I call the police, too?" he asked. Sierra said nothing, but only because the question hadn''t registered with her yet. Then, perhaps after getting a better look at the surroundings and remembering where they were, he put his phone down. "Um, I- I didn''t see anything you didn''t want me to see." He nervously looked away from her. Sierra suddenly leaned in over the window. She put one hand on him.


    "Ah, hey, don''t worry about all that...hey, look at me," she said. The delivery man nervously looked at her. Sierra noticed she seemed to be staring at her upper left arm so she looked over there too. In what looked to be solid black ink, there was something resembling a tattoo of a large insect. Perhaps a beetle of some sort? Sierra''s vision was slightly clouded.


    "Wh- what can I do for you?" Right as he asked that, Sierra suddenly received a mental notification.


    D-rank Dungeon Boss defeated.


    Strength increased by 50


    Defense increased by 50


    Stamina increased by 50


    Magic increased by 50


    Skill upgraded: Power Strike D to Power Strike C


    Skill upgraded: Layered Defense D to Layered Defense C


    Skill upgraded: Evasion C to Evasion B


    Skill upgraded: Regeneration D to Regeneration C


    All of a sudden, Sierra felt the most energized throughout the entire day and her bleeding stopped. She started to laugh uncontrollably with the sudden surge of power.


    "M- miss?!" the delivery man called out in fear. Sierra let go of the man as she continued to laugh.


    "J- just go!" she said, still laughing. "Go and deliver your packages!"


    "R- right!" he drove off as Sierra continued to laugh. She flung her arms around madly as she laughed and now had a clearer look at the mark on her arm. It wasn''t a beetle, she thought. But, it was probably one better suited to her. So many near-death experiences in one day and she triumphed over all of them, even livelier now than she was at the start of the day. Today was the birth of the seemingly unkillable "cockroach"


    *****


    Skill of the Day: Evasion


    Rarity: One Star (Common)


    Description: A Skill that temporarily raises Dexterity by consuming mana. The bonus to Dexterity increases with an increase in Rank, starting at a 50% increase at Evasion D. As a low-rarity Skill, though, the bonus to Dexterity is also capped at certain amounts, starting at a 50 Stat point increase maximum at Evasion D.

 Two Birthdays (First Birthday)

    Date: March 15, 2020 - 6:25 pm


    Location: Prussia


    It has been three days since the sudden outbreak of monsters all around the world. There were more than a hundred different reported locations of monster outbreaks, which in total resulted in more than 14,000 deaths, with many more injured. There were many reports of red portals which seemed to be the origin of the monster outbreaks, but follow-up investigations around the reported locations of the portals found nothing. The Earth Alliance has begun compiling and analyzing the reports and are currently considering the unified actions that all member nations may need to take. As of now, each country afflicted by a monster outbreak is conducting their own investigations, but because no traces were left behind of any of the monsters other than the massive destruction, they were making little to no headway. Around the world, the most the countries could do was interview the eyewitnesses and send out agents to gather more intel. This resulted in one particularly tall, young woman receiving her second round of questioning at the police station.


    ¡°So, to summarize, this is what happened. On March 12, some time between 9:30 and 10pm, a red portal suddenly appeared outside of your bedroom window, which was located on the second floor of an apartment building on 8th Street. Monsters resembling black bears, but with red patterning and claws, came out of this portal, some of them crashing against the outside walls of the apartment building. One of them even managed to crash through your bedroom window. You pushed said monster off your window sill and it fell onto the concrete below, smashing its head into the pavement. The monster¡­died and turned into a black mist-like vapour?¡± asked the officer seated across from the woman.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°You continued to observe these monsters continue to pour out of the portal. This continued for several minutes, with a total of¡­four more attempting to jump through your window?¡±


    ¡°Three or four.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not sure?¡± a second officer asked, this one standing beside the seated officer.


    ¡°Uh, yeah, maybe three or four. Up to five, including the first one,¡± she replied.


    ¡°Right, got it.¡± The seated officer made a note on his laptop.


    ¡°So, this whole time while you were staying in your bedroom, watching the monsters coming out of some magic portal and pushing off other monsters that tried clinging onto your window sill?¡± the standing officer asked.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Why did you not call the police?¡± the standing officer continued his questioning. The young woman hesitated to respond.


    ¡°Ms. Tanenbaum, please know that you are not being charged or investigated for any crime. Officer Schumacher and I just want to make sure we are getting the full story here,¡± said the seated officer.


    ¡°...I just didn¡¯t think to call the police,¡± she eventually replied. ¡°Can I leave soon?¡±


    ¡°Of course, but please, could you just answer a few more questions for us?¡± the seated officer asked.


    ¡°...Okay,¡± she finally complied after fidgeting slightly in her seat.


    ¡°Thank you very much, Ms. Tanenbaum. So, continuing from what you said earlier, you saw the monsters that landed safely on the ground spread out in all directions. From what you could see, they did not attack any of the parked cars, mailboxes, or other objects on the street below.¡±


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡±


    ¡°What some of them did try to do was claw at the apartment building¡¯s walls?¡±


    ¡°Yes, like they were trying to climb it.¡±


    ¡°But they were unable to do so?¡±


    ¡°Yes. They growled at us, too.¡±


    ¡°Us?¡± Officer Schumacher asked.


    ¡°...At me.¡± The two officers looked at each other.


    ¡°Was there someone else in your room, Ms. Tanenbaum?¡±


    ¡°No. I was alone,¡± she replied, trying to keep a straight face.


    ¡°I will remind you again, Ms. Tanenbaum, you are not being charged or investigated for any crimes. But, if you are holding onto any information that could help paint a fuller picture of what happened on that day, it would be greatly appreciated.¡±


    ¡°...Can I leave soon?¡± Just as Officer Schumacher was about to speak up again, there was a knock on the door outside. They turned to look, and then another officer stepped in.


    ¡°What?¡± Officer Schumacher asked.


    ¡°They say to let her go now,¡± the new officer said, while walking towards them. Officer Schumacher looked like he wanted to complain, but the new officer came in close and whispered something to him. Officer Schumacher took another look at the woman and then shook his head with mild irritation.


    ¡°Well, thank you very much for meeting with us again, Ms. Tanenbaum.¡± The seated officer thanked the woman and took out a contact card. ¡°Please, if anything else comes up or you recall anything else, call us again and we will arrange another meeting at a convenient time for you. You can also contact me directly if you want to talk right away¡­about anything.¡± He slid the card across the table. She took the card and pocketed it.


    ¡°Where¡¯s my cake?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Follow me, I¡¯ll get it for you,¡± the new officer responded. The two left together and the seated officer saved his document before closing his laptop lid.


    ¡°Can¡¯t believe we just let her leave like that,¡± Officer Schumacher commented.


    ¡°This was a voluntary meeting, we had no right to keep her here longer than she wanted to. Otherwise we¡¯d need a warrant or some other grounds to go on.¡±


    ¡°You know she¡¯s hiding something.¡± The seated officer got up and picked up his laptop.


    ¡°Yes, but some of those secrets might be about something we have no business digging into.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±


    ¡°Also, the last you need is another complaint filed against you,¡± he said, shifting the conversation.


    ¡°...You heard what he whispered to me?¡±


    ¡°I could guess. Come on, let¡¯s take a break.¡±


    ¡°She better come back.¡± The two left the room together. ¡°I mean, she was there when the giant monster showed up as well. I heard that thing tore through three police cars.¡± The other officer still said nothing. ¡°It also smashed down most of the apartment building¡¯s front wall. Apparently she¡¯s the only surviving tenant on that side of the building.  How many blasts did it take to bring that thing down?¡±


    ¡°Karl.¡±


    ¡°Yeah?¡±


    ¡°Just shut up, already.


    ***


    A half hour bus ride later, the young woman and her box finally made it to their destination for the night. On the grounds of one of the city¡¯s many churches was a detached building that served as an orphanage. The building was housing for the orphans and the church ran this orphanage. This is but one of a few orphanages run by the dominant religion of this country.


    She rang the doorbell on the orphanage¡¯s front door and waited. It opened a few moments later.


    ¡°Angela?¡± a man dressed in priest robes answered the door.


    ¡°Yes, Father Stefan.¡±


    ¡°It is quite late to visit here.¡± The priest spoke with a bit of unease.


    ¡°I was delayed a lot by¡­some things. But, I came here with a cake to celebrate Miel¡¯s birthday.¡± Angela shyly smiled as she tried to emphasise the box she was holding. ¡°It¡¯s a big one this time, so that the other children can have a piece as well.¡± Father Stefan looked at the box, but said nothing.


    ¡°The younger children¡­have already gone to bed.¡± The priest looked like he was about to close the door on her.


    ¡°That¡¯s fine, I will leave the rest of the cake for them to eat tomorrow,¡± she replied. Father Stefan hesitated a little longer before responding.


    ¡°Alright, come in.¡± Father Stefan let her in and started leading her to the kitchen. Angela hummed as they made their way there. She set the boxed cake onto a table and then turned around to leave.


    ¡°I¡¯ll go get Miel,¡± she said. The priest suddenly grabbed her arm to stop her. She turned around in surprise.


    ¡°I think Miel is busy right now. Best let her finish first.¡± Angela was confused by his statement.


    ¡°...I think she can take a break for this¡­¡± Angela said, not quite figuring out what the priest meant.


    ¡°It probably won¡¯t be long. Have a seat. I will go and bring in the other children for you to talk to while you wait.¡± Father Stefan attempted to pull her back to the table but couldn¡¯t move her even an inch. It was almost as if she was rooted to the floor.


    ¡°Father Stefan¡­are you saying¡­Miel is meeting someone right now?¡± Angela asked, barely masking her rising anger.


    ¡°It won¡¯t be long,¡± was his answer. Suddenly, the orphanage shook. The priest let go and looked around in panic, thinking it was an earthquake. Angela knew it was not. She immediately sprinted to Miel¡¯s room with incredible speed. Angela arrived in record time and right as the door suddenly flew open. There was a middle-aged man dressed in business clothes, one hand on the doorknob and his other arm holding his suit jacket. Angela recognized the man, but he did not, as he was only desperately focused on running away. He tried to shove his way past but found himself knocked back instead, as if he just tried to run through a wall. The man looked like he was about to shout at her when he seemed to finally recognize her as he lay with his back on the ground. Angela saw a red portal in the corner of the room, but found nobody else other than him.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Miel?¡± she asked angrily as she reached down and grabbed his shoulder.


    ¡°A- ah!¡± he cried out in pain from her grip, so she loosened it.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± she asked again. The man pointed over to the red portal.


    ¡°Sh- she suddenly fell inside of that thing. It looked like she did.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°She fell onto it, and then suddenly just disappeared!¡± The man attempted to get back on his feet but failed to move her hand off his shoulder.  ¡°L- let go, Angela! We have to get out of here right now! Monsters could come out of that thing!¡± Angela said nothing. She examined the man¡¯s attire and made a mental note of a couple things: his tie knot did not look to be hastily done and he had a belt on. She released her grip and went over to the portal. The man immediately got up and ran out the room.


    Angela brought her hand over to the portal, and just when she was about to touch it, information suddenly entered her brain.


    Dungeon Information


    Rank: D


    Max Occupancy: 10


    Time Remaining until outbreak: 47:58:03


    Enter the Dungeon?  [Yes/No]


    ¡°Yes,¡± she said aloud. Angela¡¯s vision suddenly went blank and she felt the ground below her vanish as she experienced a second of weightlessness. Then, her feet were on solid ground again and her vision returned. She suddenly found herself standing on grass, and a few feet away from her, she saw a teenage girl in the middle of picking herself up off the ground.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    ¡°A- Angela?¡±


    ¡°Miel!¡± Angela immediately went over to help her up. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Angela took note of Miel¡¯s appearance. She had on socks, pants, and a blouse. The blouse¡¯s buttons were completely done up, but it looked like the collar was slightly stretched. Miel seemed to notice Angela analyzing her.


    ¡°Angela, what are you doing here?¡± she asked.


    ¡°I came here to find you,¡± she answered, as if this was obvious.


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard the news? It said the monsters that destroyed your apartment building came out of a red portal! You were so lucky to not be there when it happened.¡± Angela¡¯s eyes shifted to the side.


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Angela struggled to continue her response.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s just hurry up and get out of here before those monsters notice us.¡± Angela didn¡¯t notice earlier, but further up ahead were a great number of large bushes, and from between them, one could see creatures that looked like black bears. A lot of them. However, unlike the ones that rampaged throughout the world, most of them were just lying on the ground, perhaps napping. The few that were moving about were doing so very casually, as if strolling. If one did not have prior knowledge, one might have thought them to be relatively docile creatures.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± The two of them turned around to face a red portal. Miel held hands with Angela and then touched the portal with her other hand. Her hand went right through it. Angela also tried to touch it, but her hand went straight through as well. She also received a mental notice.


    Unable to exit the Dungeon. Defeat the Dungeon Boss or wait for the Dungeon Outbreak.


    Angela was puzzled. Not by the requirements of exiting, but from thinking about the earlier monster outbreak. From what she remembered, monsters started coming out of the monster almost immediately after the portal appeared. But, this one had a time limit on it. Before she could think more on this, Miel spoke up.


    ¡°It looks like our only choice is to try and survive.¡± Miel¡¯s voice trembled slightly as she spoke. ¡°If I remember right, there was a timer. There were three numbers, maybe? I can¡¯t really remember but I think the first one was forty-something.¡±


    ¡°Forty-seven.¡±


    ¡°So, you saw the timer as well?¡± Miel asked.


    ¡°Yes. I also remember being asked if I wanted to enter.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, me too.¡±


    ¡°...Why did you enter the dungeon?¡± Angela¡¯s tone was very serious. Miel was a bit taken back.


    ¡°I¡­¡± Miel thought to choose her words very carefully, ¡°it was an accident.¡±


    ¡°I heard that you fell into the portal.¡±


    ¡°Heard? Ah, yes, I did. I accidentally fell into the portal.¡±


    ¡°How did you fall?¡± Miel tried to look away but Angela just moved over so that they were looking at each other again. ¡°What happened?¡± Miel knew exactly what Angela was asking about.


    ¡°It¡¯s not what you think, Angela,¡± she began, speaking slowly. ¡°Father Stefan brought Mr. Tolle here today without telling me first. I met with him to discuss some things, but I knew you were coming today, so I planned to have him leave after just talking for a bit.¡±


    ¡°What would you need to talk about with him?¡± Miel considered whether she could spin a believable lie. ¡°I told you that you shouldn¡¯t be doing something like this.¡±


    ¡°But, we could use the money-¡± Suddenly, they could hear the bushes nearby rustling. One of the bear-like creatures walked past a bush and looked up at the two of them. It wore a curious expression, as did Angela and Miel. They both waited to see what it would do next. It took another a few steps forward, but did not show any signs of hostility. It seemed to walk around the two of them, staying about twenty feet away the whole time. After completing a semi-circle around them, it turned around and simply walked away.


    ¡°What is it doing?¡± Angela asked, mostly to herself.


    ¡°No idea. The news said they would attack any person on sight.¡±


    ¡°They do,¡± she replied, as she started to follow it.


    ¡°W- wait, what are you doing?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to take any chances. Maybe it just wants to tell the others and they will all come at us together.¡± Angela had very good reason to be suspicious about the monster¡¯s actions. No matter how docile they appear now, the scenes from three days ago were unforgettable.


    ¡°Are you planning to stop it somehow?¡± Miel asked with panic, as she chased after Angela. She grabbed Angela¡¯s hand and she stopped moving for a moment.


    ¡°Yes.¡± As gently as she could, Angela forced Miel to let go and she continued after the bear-like creature. After moving about twenty feet away from their original position, the monster suddenly stopped in its tracks. It turned around, and growled at her. Angela continued moving, unperturbed. Miel ran after Angela, thinking she had to do something, but unsure of what. The monster charged at Angela right as Miel was about to reach her, and after a quick slap to the side of the face, the monster¡¯s head separated its neck. Blood splattered everywhere, but quickly disappeared, along with the rest of the monster''s body.


    ¡°W- what?¡± Miel gasped in disbelief. Angela received a new update.


    D-rank Dungeon Monster Core obtained. Item added to Inventory.


    She had never seen this before, but she ignored it for now.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Miel. I lied.¡± Angela spoke with genuine remorse.


    ¡°Y- you lied?¡± Miel was still in the middle of processing what just happened when another monster seemed to take notice of them.


    ¡°Yes, I actually was at my apartment during the monster outbreak.¡±


    ¡°O- okay,¡± Miel let out, trying to stay focused on both Angela and the monster at the same time, while still sorting out Angela¡¯s revelation.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t want you to worry.¡± The newly arriving monster growled at her and made its approach. ¡°I suddenly got some mark on my chest and words kept popping up in my mind, mentioning stats and Skills.¡± The monster charged at Angela and she effortlessly killed it with a smack.


    ¡°R- really?¡± Miel¡¯s mind started to clear up and she went over to Angela. ¡°Do you think that means I can do that, too, then?¡± Angela blinked at her. ¡°I also suddenly got these weird messages. It started right after my side started to burn. The portal suddenly appeared a few seconds later.¡±


    Miel proceeded to explain to Angela everything she remembered, and Angela reciprocated. Angela also showed her the tattoo-like mark that also suddenly appeared on her body. She undid the top buttons of her shirt and revealed a small black cross on her upper chest, right below her collarbone. Miel hadn¡¯t seen her mark yet, but she pulled up her blouse and revealed what appeared to be the profile of open jaws filled with sharp teeth. The profile was limited to only the lines immediately above and below the rows of teeth so they could not figure out what animal it was supposed to be.


    Angela also asked Miel if she received any notice when she killed the two monsters. Miel said no, so Angela then proceeded to help her out. She went over to the next monster and smashed all four of its legs. She then restrained its mouth so it couldn¡¯t bite. Angela told Miel to try hitting it, which she did without a single comment about this out-of-the-ordinary brutality. However, her punches couldn¡¯t kill it. She tried kicking it too. Other than leading some to believe a great bit of animal cruelty was occurring, Miel failed to do much else. Finally, Angela decided to break the beast¡¯s neck. It died, and Angela obtained another D-rank Dungeon Monster Core. As Angela pondered more on what the Inventory was, another notification suddenly appeared.


    Inventory


    D-rank Dungeon Monster Core x 3


    She still didn¡¯t understand what that meant.


    ¡°Oh, I suddenly got something!¡± Miel exclaimed.


    ¡°A monster core?¡±


    ¡°What? No, it says my Stamina increased.¡±


    ¡°Is that it?¡± she asked simply.


    ¡°Should there be more?¡±


    ¡°...Let¡¯s try again.¡± Angela subdued another monster and this time, with greater determination, Miel stomped on its head until it finally died. As a result she gained more stat points and acquired two new skills: Unarmed Combat Training D and Instinct C.


    Angela continued this process with several more monsters, and any fear Miel had at the beginning disappeared. She did not directly question how Angela was so much stronger than her and just focused on continuously gaining stats so that she could fight them one-on-one by herself. All this time, as they hunted the monsters, for whatever reason, although the monsters were prepared to attack when they came close, the other monsters who saw the events unfold didn¡¯t seem to care at all. They were apathetic to both the killing of their own and the impending inevitability of their own demise.


    Miel eventually wanted to try fighting a monster on her own, having killed the last one with a single kick. Her blows were hard enough to knock the monster off balance and she swiftly finished it off as it went to the ground. She was ecstatic about her victory. Angela thought that it was a bit out of character for her. Miel usually had a rather forward, even sometimes abrasive personality, but she wasn¡¯t one who would get into physical confrontations. Although, it¡¯s not like Angela was one who got into fights either. She just always tried to be pragmatic about things and to avoid worrying about things that are too much for her brain to handle. Just as Angela figured it was time to stop worrying about these things, Miel started talking aloud.


    ¡°D-rank Dungeon Monster Core? Inventory? What¡¯s that? Hmmmm.¡± Angela was about to talk about it as well when Miel suddenly produced an object out of thin air. As if by sleight of hand, she was now holding something that looked like a red marble.


    ¡°How did you do that?¡± Angela asked, her confusion clear on her face.


    ¡°Well, it said something was in my Inventory so I just thought that I¡¯d like to take it out to see what it looks like.¡± Miel answered as if it was obvious that this was the first thing one should try.


    ¡°Really?¡± Angela tried to do the same. She imagined herself withdrawing the items out of her Inventory, and her hand was suddenly overflowing with red marbles that spilled onto the grass.


    ¡°...That¡¯s a lot more than me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can fit this many in my pockets.¡± As Angela said this, Miel¡¯s marble suddenly disappeared. ¡°Where¡¯d your marble go?¡±


    ¡°I just thought about putting it back into my Inventory.¡± Angela did the same and sure enough, it worked. She thought about the Inventory again, and she saw the same number of D-rank Dungeon Monster Cores listed. Angela marveled about this new discovery and wondered where the items actually went. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s keep going.¡±


    After about an hour, they killed the last monster in sight. Then, they returned to the opening of a large cave, conspicuously placed in the centre of the field of monsters. Miel¡¯s Instinct skill let her know that this was best left for last as they circled around finishing off the monsters. Honestly, common sense for most people probably would have told them to come back at the end.


    The mouth of the cave was about fifteen feet across at the base and ten feet high. It was certainly large enough to house a particular D-rank Dungeon Boss. Angela could see Miel had grown much stronger, but from her firsthand experience, she knew Miel wouldn¡¯t be a match for that giant monster.


    ¡°I think it might be better if I go in alone,¡± Angela suggested.


    ¡°What?! What if you get surrounded in there?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. If it¡¯s really too much for me, I¡¯ll come back out.¡±


    ¡°All the more reason for me to come as well, then. It should be easier to get away if we work together.¡± Angela didn¡¯t agree with Miel''s reasoning, but she always disliked arguing with her.


    ¡°Okay, but, I¡¯ll lead.¡± The two entered the cave. Further into the cave were lit torches on either side. Miel went to take a closer look, and when she waved her hands in front of them, she noticed something strange. The air around the torch didn¡¯t feel hot at all. She also contemplated sticking her hand right into the fire, but quickly dismissed the idea of taking such a risk.


    The cave started to gently slope downwards and then gradually declined steeper. After a couple minutes of walking, there was a sudden sharp turn that led to a much wider space underground. There were torches spread out all around the walls of this wide, circular space, but the main source of lighting came from above. The features of the actual light source were indiscernible, as it appeared as if sunlight was simply shining down from an open roof. Napping in the center of the cavern was a giant monster, at least twice the size of an adult polar bear, but with black fur and metallic front paws that ended in red blades. Streaks of red fur also patterned its back, shoulders and sides. It opened its eyes, revealing yellow pupils.


    Angela decided to make the first move in and charged forward before the monster got off the ground. Miel followed, either bravely or recklessly. The bear pushed itself off the ground with its front paws and slashed at the charging Angela. Despite how easily she dominated the monsters outside, Angela was a terrible fighter, and could only think to try and block the attack by pushing with her hands. The palm of its metal paw collided with her hands and she managed to actually knock it back. However, Angela lost her balance from the impact and fell over.


    Miel rushed in to help by delivering a flying kick to the monster¡¯s head. The monster shuddered slightly and Miel managed to actually recover from the flying kick and landed on her feet. However, it was a shaky landing, as Miel could feel that she injured her foot against the monster¡¯s head. The monster growled at Miel as she quickly tried to back off. The pain in her foot caused her to stumble after a backstep, and the monster brought its mouth forward, ready to snap its jaws into her. Just as it was about to bite into her, Angela jumped in and grabbed her. The monster¡¯s front teeth tore into Angela¡¯s back and right shoulder. Angela screamed out in pain as the teeth started grinding into bone. Bearing through it, Angela struck the monster on the face with the back of left hand. The monster let go and Angela fell to her knees, on top of Miel.


    The monster moved its paws to cut off their escape as it growled at them, seemingly intent on finishing them off with its jaws. Miel tried to will herself to move and help but she was paralyzed with fear. She looked with horror as the monster bit down on the same spot. Drops of Angela¡¯s blow splashed out of the open wound as its teeth dug into her flesh again. Miel couldn¡¯t see exactly what was happening, but it was obvious. Angela refused to cry out again and continued to grimace as more blood flowed out of her wounds. At that moment, Miel was torn between cursing her overconfidence and praying for her miracle. Despite being raised in a church-run orphanage for nine years, Miel wasn¡¯t the least bit religious. However, if it meant saving Angela, she was willing to become a believer or do anything else necessary.


    Something akin to a miracle did occur. However, not at that exact moment. No, this was something that happened three days ago, when the monsters suddenly appeared outside of Angela¡¯s apartment. She awakened as a Dungeoneer and acquired new skills after pushing several monsters to their deaths. Among them was a unique skill that allowed her to survive back then even when the Boss appeared and destroyed the building she was inside. A notification appeared in Angela¡¯s head and she smacked the monster on the side of the face again with the back of her hand. This time, there was a cracking sound. The monster let out something that some could mistake for a whimper as its head was rocked to the side.


    Angela stood up and swung her left arm out at it. There was another cracking sound, followed by a more pathetic whimper. Miel watched as several of the monster¡¯s teeth fell to the ground, dirtied with a couple small pools of black blood. Angela turned around to face the monster directly. For just a second, the monster seemed to shrink back in fear. Then, it let out a growl and attempted to put on an intimidating face again, marred by the missing teeth and bloody cheek. The monster tried to slash at her with one of its claws, but she punched it on the snout before its front paw could get even a foot off the ground. Even more teeth fell out this time and its nose was clearly broken. Then, she relentlessly pummeled it with only her left hand. There were a number of times where it would have fallen to ground if it were not for the impacts from her barrage that continued to rock its body. Soon, she found herself punching right through the usual mist-like vapour instead of a toothless, bloody pulp of a face, the monster having already died one or two punches ago.


    After a moment of silence, Miel went over to Angelica to check on her wounds. She thought it looked serious and they hurried back to the red portal, both having received the notification that it was now possible to exit the Dungeon, the Dungeon Boss having been defeated.


    They exited the portal together and found themself in Miel¡¯s room again. They were making their way to the orphanage¡¯s washroom, which had a first aid kit, when they passed by the kitchen. Angela paused.


    ¡°What?¡± Miel asked with great concern. ¡°Are you having trouble standing?¡±


    ¡°Happy Birthday,¡± she said numbly.  Miel stared back blankly. ¡°I forgot to say it earlier.¡± Miel still looked confused. ¡°I got you your favourite cake. It¡¯s over there.¡± Angela pointed at the box that was still lying on the kitchen table. During the awkward silence, they could hear that there was some sort of commotion going on outside. Not too surprising, since the portal was likely reported quite some time ago. Finally, Miel let out an uncertain laugh.


    ¡°Thanks, we¡¯ll eat it later.¡±


    ****


    Skill of the Day: Avenger


    Rarity: Five Stars (Unique)


    Description: A Skill perfectly suited as a gift for one who is physically weak and modest, but strong at heart. As the namesake of this Skill implies, this is a Skill that effectively enables one to have their revenge. When the Skill¡¯s active effect is triggered (usually by receiving direct or indirect damage), the power of the user¡¯s attacks against the target of vengeance is doubled and the power of the target¡¯s attacks against the user are also halved. Additionally, this Skill permanently raises Strength and Magic (passive). The bonus to Strength and Magic increases with an increase in Rank, starting at 100 Stat points at Avenger C.

 Two Birthdays (Second Birthday) [updated]

    Date: March 21, 2020 - 4:20pm


    Location: Merrick


    It has been nine days since the tragic outbreak at the high school. The next day of school was unsurprisingly cancelled and Spring break started early. It was, however, not a particularly joyous start as many students other than Clement lost their lives that day. Clement, however, was the only student at that school who died standing his ground, and not running away or hiding. Unfortunately, most of the school would not end up rightly remembering him as the hero he was, with his efforts being largely overshadowed by another student who single-handedly defeated all of the monsters with the exception of the one killed by Clement¡¯s class.


    Carlos, the one who had delivered the finishing blow to this one monster, would not be remembered by anyone who did not already know him. He did not reveal his awakened abilities, which paled in comparison to the other hero. He also used his Mentalism skill to help convince the rest of the class to push the narrative that it was only thanks to the class¡¯s combined effort under Clement¡¯s leadership that the rest of them survived.


    Carlos was taken to the hospital to have his injuries treated. There were no complications and he recovered, but two long scars remained on the right side of his face. He didn¡¯t personally mind the scars, especially given what had happened to Clement, but he would often wear a cloth mask outside due to people¡¯s stares. He didn¡¯t want to make people too uncomfortable and he wanted to avoid any undue attention.


    Today, Carlos was taking the subway downtown with his friend. Like him, she was also wearing a mask, but she was covering her face for a different reason. She also had on a hoodie with the hood brought down low enough to almost cover her eyes. The two of them sat next together in an awkward silence. One stop before their destination, more people came aboard, and a pair in particular were animatedly conversing.


    ¡°They¡¯re still happening! Two more portals just appeared in Merrick today!¡± one man exclaimed to the other, waving his phone in his hand.


    ¡°What¡¯s this world coming to,¡± the other responded. ¡°Magical beasts and dungeons just popping up everywhere and people with superpowers.¡±


    ¡°Man, I wish I had powers, too,¡± the first man said, with a daydreaming glint in his eyes.


    ¡°So you can go fight the monsters and be a hero?¡± the second man asked, seemingly genuinely surprised by the first man¡¯s righteousness.


    ¡°Huh? Yeah, I guess that¡¯d be nice too, but I mean, come on, haven¡¯t people always wanted to have superpowers when they were kids?¡±


    ¡°To be superheroes?¡±


    ¡°No, because they¡¯re cool! Just being able to fly around, or have super strength, or super speed. You know, stuff like that!¡±


    ¡°Well, I suppose it would be a lot easier getting around if I had some superpowers. I wouldn¡¯t go off fighting monsters, though.¡±


    ¡°Why not? They say countries around the world are looking for people with superpowers to fight the monsters and they¡¯re offering a lot of money. Apparently, regular soldiers can¡¯t survive in the Dungeons.¡±


    ¡°If you want to make money fighting, go join the army.¡±


    ¡°What? I don¡¯t want to go fight in some war!¡±


    ¡°What would you call what¡¯s going on right now? You think we are negotiating with the monsters?¡± The first man had to pause for a moment before answering.


    ¡°It¡¯s different,¡± the first man finally said.


    ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°Because, in a war, I¡¯d go charging in because some politicians told someone else to make me do it, and then I¡¯d get shot and killed in some foreign country.¡± The first man spoke in a rather matter-of-fact tone.


    ¡°And inside a Dungeon, which you are only in because some government paid you to go inside, you go fighting monsters, which will kill you, because you don¡¯t know the first thing about fighting, and you end up dying inside¡­some kind of other world. Yeah, very different.¡± The second man¡¯s enthusiasm deflated from the sarcastic rebuttal.


    ¡°...The monster fighting is cooler and pays more,¡± he mumbled bitterly.


    The train reached the next stop, and Carlos and his friend got off. His friend took the lead, and the two walked together through the crowded station and then the crowded downtown streets. Carlos didn¡¯t know where they were going since this was a surprise invitation to hang out and he didn¡¯t know what to say either. Usually, his friend was quite talkative but her message to him was vague and she hadn¡¯t said anything else since meeting up.


    After nearly twenty minutes of seemingly aimless wandering, they eventually reached a karaoke bar. They went in, Carlos¡¯ friend rented a private box for them and then they went inside. Inside the box, she suddenly took off her hoodie, revealing a plain white tee shirt underneath. With her hood off, one could also clearly see her flaming red hair that went past her shoulders. She then removed her cloth mask as well and put it on the table. Her cheeks were flushed, and she clearly looked a bit embarrassed.


    ¡°Sorry, I think I was being a bit too paranoid when I didn¡¯t want to talk in a crowd.¡± She ended her apology with a nervous laugh.


    ¡°I see, so that was why.¡± Carlos took off his coat and took a seat. His friend sat closely next to him.


    ¡°I mean, there were so many reporters, and even after that, a lot of people were recognizing me and I just didn¡¯t want to deal with any of that right now.¡± Her words were spoken quickly and she looked flustered.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I get it. You don¡¯t have to make excuses to me.¡± Carlos spoke in his usual, calm voice.


    ¡°I mean, it was really weird, though, right? Just sitting next to each other, and not talking for the whole trip. Ah, I really should have written more in my message! Wait, couldn¡¯t I have at least texted you during the trip? There were so many things I wanted to say! Ah, and then there were those two guys on the train! Man, I really-¡±


    ¡°Haley. Please, just calm down for a moment.¡± Haley took a couple deep breaths and tried to relax where she sat. ¡°Feeling better now?¡± Carlos asked when he saw the redness in her face beginning to fade.


    ¡°Yeah, much better now.¡± She let out another deep breath and grabbed a microphone. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s sing some songs.¡± Haley still had not explained to Carlos why she suddenly invited him out, but he decided to just go along with it for now.


    Haley started picking out songs for both her and Carlos and they sang and chatted for almost an hour. This particular karaoke box had an option to grade you on your singing, and Carlos agreed to Haley¡¯s singing competition even though he knew he would lose. She didn¡¯t state what the winner would get, but Carlos wasn¡¯t concerned about what he might lose and only wanted to make it as easy as possible for Haley to get to what she was aiming to do today. The end result showed Carlos wasn¡¯t a bad singer, scoring almost 80% on average, but he was completely blown out of the water by Haley¡¯s 98%.


    After an hour, they ordered some food and drinks. It was only right before the refreshments were about to be delivered when Haley realized that she wanted to cover up again. In a panic, she dove into the corner and covered herself with her hoodie as Carlos opened the door for the karaoke staff. The staff member silently set the food and drinks down and left without a word. The room was silent for a moment after the staff member left, with neither commenting on how it would have been so much better to just have the staff wait outside for a bit until she could cover up normally.


    ¡°Please, don¡¯t bring this up in the future,¡± Haley finally said to break the silence, hoodie still covering herself.


    ¡°If that¡¯s what the winner wants as her reward.¡± Haley threw off her hoodie and stood back up.


    ¡°Okay, round two?!¡±


    ¡°Alright, but at least give me a bit of a handicap this time.¡± Carlos knew no small advantage would be nearly enough, but he felt it was important to keep Haley in a good mood.


    All the songs Haley sang in the second round were by male singers, but it still wasn¡¯t even close. After nearly two hours, Haley arbitrarily ended the second round and declared herself the winner once more. After a short restroom break, Haley was finally ready to move on to the real reason she invited Carlos out.


    ¡°Carlos¡­how¡¯s it going?¡± Okay, maybe she still was not quite ready.


    ¡°I¡¯m doing fine.¡± Haley didn¡¯t seem to believe him.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to keep the mask on when we¡¯re talking.¡± Other than when he was singing his songs, Carlos had his mask on the whole time. Carlos said nothing. Haley touched Carlos¡¯ right ear. A bit of the bottom lode was sliced off by the Boss monster and a close look would also reveal that parts of the scar were not fully covered by the mask. ¡°I should have gotten there faster.¡± Carlos grabbed Haley¡¯s hand and set it back down.


    ¡°This much is nothing. And I know you were doing your best.¡± Haley took a slow breath before continuing.


    ¡°Carlos, do you remember what those two guys on the train were talking about? About the portals?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, they said more are still appearing. It looks like this won¡¯t be ending any time soon.¡±


    ¡°And also about people going inside to fight the monsters?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that seems to be what¡¯s going on. What about that?¡±


    ¡°I''m going to do it, too.¡± At first, Haley started by looking away, but she made sure to stare adamantly at Carlos after she finished saying it. Carlos locked eyes with Haley. As the silence stretched on, he also made note of how even her irises had changed colour to red, just like her hair. What other changes might occur in the future?


    ¡°It¡¯s dangerous,¡± he flatly stated.


    ¡°Not as dangerous for me as others,¡± Haley commented, both of them still staring at each other.


    ¡°We have no idea on what goes on inside.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°We do. I read some reports and they all say the Dungeons are identical.¡±


    ¡°That might only be for now. Also, you are not trained in fighting.¡±


    ¡°A lot of the people who cleared the Dungeons aren¡¯t trained in fighting.¡±


    ¡°Those people have exceptional powers.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve seen what I can do.¡± Carlos paused. He wasn''t sure this was going to be an argument he would ever win through normal means. He briefly considered using his Mentalism Skill but then immediately dismissed the thought of being so underhanded with her.


    ¡°Why are you so dead set on this?¡±


    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s like what those guys on that train were talking about.¡±


    ¡°About being a hero?¡± Even with Carlos¡¯ biased opinion as Haley¡¯s friend, although he considered her a very good person, he wouldn¡¯t exactly use the word ¡®heroic¡¯ to describe her. But, then again, he should probably reevaluate that opinion after she dealt with the Dungeon Outbreak. And also, Carlos didn¡¯t really think that he was one to talk.


    ¡°...Sort of. I was really talking about how amazing it is to get to use my powers.¡± Carlos could appreciate Haley¡¯s honesty, but he wouldn¡¯t let himself be so easily convinced to relent.


    ¡°I know you¡¯ve always just wanted to do whatever you thought was fun, but even with your powers, don¡¯t you think you are underestimating the risks too much. What if you have to fight even stronger monsters in the future?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why I need to get stronger now!¡± Haley¡¯s outburst surprised Carlos. Haley noticed this immediately and she took a second to recompose herself. ¡°You don¡¯t know this since you don¡¯t have powers, but I get stronger from defeating monsters. Now is the best time, since I know there is no way I can lose to the monsters that are appearing right now.¡±


    Carlos could see desperation in Haley¡¯s face, but he was having difficulty understanding why it was there. Carlos was often very straight-forward with people, especially with Haley, so there were plenty of times he suggested for her not to do something only for her to do them anyway. Why is it that for this instance, she seems so determined to have his support?


    ¡°Is this the reason you suddenly wanted to meet, even though we would see each other tomorrow?¡± Carlos asked, prematurely ending the main argument.


    ¡°Yeah¡­sort of.¡± Haley looked off to the side. ¡°I¡­actually told my parents about my plans as well.¡± Carlos could tell they didn¡¯t like the idea without her having to explain more. Haley¡¯s background was more extraordinary than most and her family was very well off. And despite her parents¡¯ respective celebrity statuses, from meeting them many times in the past, he knew they would not want her to be in the limelight in this kind of way.


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing you argued about it.¡± Carlos stated the obvious.


    ¡°Yeah. They even brought up how they had invited a music producer to my birthday party tomorrow as a surprise. You know, since they want me to be a singer.¡±


    ¡°Do you not want to be one, anymore?¡±


    ¡°No, that¡¯s not it. I just want to focus on getting stronger right now. A lot stronger. Much stronger.¡± Carlos was tempted to ask why she was so intent on getting stronger, but he somehow knew that he probably wouldn¡¯t get a straight answer. ¡°I guess I also just got upset about the whole surprise. They¡¯ve always invited people I¡¯ve never met before to my birthday. You know, to set me up better for the future.¡±


    ¡°Well, it at least shouldn¡¯t be as bad this year, right? You even have a lot more of your friends going this time.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re right. A lot of my classmates are coming this time.¡± She spoke in a light-hearted tone and wore a smile, but it was all an act. Carlos didn¡¯t seem to see through it, though.


    ¡°Perhaps we should get going, soon?¡± Carlos suggested, thinking that the matter was sufficiently resolved. Haley¡¯s fake smile instantly disappeared.


    ¡°No, I think I¡¯m still feeling quite upset. Keep me company for the rest of the night, alright? That¡¯s my request as the winner of the second round.¡± Carlos didn¡¯t understand her sudden change, but he complied.


    ¡°Alright, but no more bets.¡±


    They extended their time in the booth and ordered more food and drinks. They managed to stay in the booth for another two and a half hours, singing a variety of songs, including duets, and chatting casually about almost everything other than Dungeons. After 10pm, Haley returned to the box after her latest restroom break. After closing the door, she was about to take off her hoodie and mask again when Carlos spoke up.


    ¡°The last extension will be ending soon.¡±


    ¡°Oh, thanks for reminding me. I¡¯ll let them know we want to extend another hour.¡± Carlos took a step towards her, partially blocking her path.


    ¡°Haley, it¡¯s getting late. We should start heading back soon. There¡¯s also your birthday party, tomorrow. Remember?¡± Haley glanced away.


    ¡°It¡¯s not enough,¡± she mumbled.


    ¡°What?¡± Carlos asked, genuinely not hearing her clearly.


    ¡°I said there¡¯s still time left. At least enough for two more songs.¡± Carlos didn¡¯t think that was what she said at all, but he let it go. They sang another duet, but Haley clearly was not at her best, as Carlos finally got his first win of the night. Instead of playing into it as a joke or gloating though, he gently grabbed her arm and had her sit down next to him.


    ¡°Was there still something else you wanted to talk about?¡±


    ¡°No, I¡¯ve already said what I wanted to say¡­¡± Carlos took off the mask he put back on after the song, and looked her dead in the eyes.


    ¡°Haley, just what has gotten you so upset?¡± At first, Haley wanted to look away, but she felt she couldn¡¯t after seeing his new resolve.


    ¡°I already told you.¡± Carlos didn¡¯t think she said any lies earlier, but he could tell she was not telling him the whole truth.


    ¡°Haley, do you think I am against you going into Dungeons because I don¡¯t understand their risks as well as you do?¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Haley looked confused by the question, but Carlos figured he was getting to the root of the problem.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be honest, I¡¯m just worried about you. And I¡¯m not saying this just because I don¡¯t understand the difference between someone who has awakened special abilities, and those who haven¡¯t.¡± Haley still looked confused, so Carlos decided to take it further. ¡°I also awakened powers that day. Although, nothing like yours.¡±


    ¡°...What?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll show you proof.¡± Carlos began unbuttoning his shirt and Haley finally broke line of sight. ¡°They say everyone that awakened special abilities also had a mark appear on their body.¡± After unbuttoning the top half of his shirt, he pulled it open to reveal the right side of his chest, revealing something that looked like a tattoo of a snake¡¯s head just below his right collarbone. Haley took a deep breath and then turned to look at him again. Her composed face was instantly broken once more.


    ¡°W- what?¡± Haley leaned in close and put her hands up against Carlos¡¯ chest. Her fingers traced around the mark.


    ¡°It¡¯s not just some tattoo I got recently.¡± Haley continued to examine the mark, seemingly oblivious of what he was saying. Carlos waited a bit for her to finish.


    ¡°This is great,¡± she muttered just before looking up at Carlos, her hands still on his chest. ¡°This means we can stay together.¡± Carlos gently pushed Haley off of him, deciding that he had finally had enough close contact. ¡°Oh! Should I show you mine as well?¡± She brought her hands to her sides and was ready to undress.


    ¡°No, no, don¡¯t do that.¡± Carlos grabbed her hands after speaking very quickly for the first time today. ¡°You don¡¯t have to show me anything here.¡± Haley made an expression that seemed to indicate that she just realized that what he said was obvious.


    ¡°Right, right, of course.¡± Haley paused after speaking, but she looked as if she still wanted to say something else.


    ¡°Okay, so, do you get it now?¡± Carlos started to button up his shirt.


    ¡°Yes, totally!¡± she said, beaming. ¡°You want me to wait until we¡¯re both eighteen so we can enter the Dungeons together.¡± Carlos¡¯ hands stopped on the top button.


    ¡°No¡­I am saying that I am worried about you and that I say this even though I know that you are strong right now and that fighting monsters can make you stronger.¡± Now, Haley looked confused again. ¡°Haley, that¡¯s the only reason I told you this. In the end, if entering the Dungeons is something you really want to do, then I won¡¯t do anything else to try to convince you otherwise. I just hope you¡¯ll be careful.¡±


    Haley looked like she still had more she wanted to say, but there was a knock on the door that interrupted the two of them. The staff advised them that their time was almost up, and Carlos refused a further extension. The two of them left the karaoke bar and made their way back home. They were silent on the walk back to the subway station and for most of the trip back.


    When they were about to get on the bus outside the station, Haley decided she wanted to walk instead. She argued it would only be a thirty-five minute walk at most, and Carlos accepted her argument. On the way, Haley made various remarks about the weather, the sky, and the songs they sang that night. All small talk to work up to the topic she actually wanted to discuss. The walk neared its end much sooner than she thought, and they were already at the crosswalk that they would split at to reach their respective homes. Haley stayed rooted on the ground as she started talking about the various snacks and desserts that would be at her party tomorrow.


    ¡°I see. I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡± Carlos started walking, but in Haley¡¯s direction. ¡°Do you have anything else planned, or will it need to be a surprise?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­yeah, I¡¯m not sure about everything. You know I don¡¯t actually do much planning for them.¡± Haley sounded both nervous and relieved as they continued to walk together. The smalltalk continued until they were just a block away from Haley¡¯s house. She stopped in her tracks again, but said nothing.


    ¡°I guess around here should be far enough,¡± Carlos said as he took out his phone. ¡°It¡¯s¡­11:56pm right now¡­my parents might be kind of mad about that.¡± His parents knew he suddenly left the house to meet with Haley and he was constantly giving them new updates about the time he expected to return by. ¡°Well, it should be fine. I¡¯ll see you tomorrow, Haley.¡± Haley grabbed Carlos¡¯ coat as he turned around.


    ¡°Carlos¡­why¡­do you not want to be with me?¡± Haley asked her question with great difficulty.


    ¡°...What are you talking about?¡± Carlos was truly confused.


    ¡°You said you didn¡¯t want to enter the Dungeons together¡­¡± Haley barely managed to keep her voice even.


    ¡°Yeah, because I think it¡¯s too dangerous. If that¡¯s something that you really want to do no matter what, then I don¡¯t want to argue with you about it any more, but I know I don¡¯t have what it takes to fight monsters.¡±


    ¡°Wait¡­so, you are just scared of fighting monsters? That¡¯s it?¡± Haley¡¯s face had a strange mix of restrained sadness and confusion.


    ¡°Yes, haven¡¯t I already said it so many times already?¡± In truth, the prospect of fighting a Boss monster did scare Carlos, but that wasn¡¯t the only reason he didn¡¯t want to do it. It wasn¡¯t even the main one, but he kept that to himself.


    ¡°S- so, okay¡­wait.¡± Carlos could see Haley was thinking hard about something.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°But, I can protect you inside the Dungeons.¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want to inconvenience you like that.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine!¡±


    ¡°Well, I still don¡¯t want to go inside.¡±


    ¡°But, won¡¯t you miss me when I¡¯m not around?¡±


    ¡°Of course I will.¡± The two had known each other since the first grade and Carlos considered Haley his best friend.


    ¡°So¡­then, you¡¯ll call me, right. And you¡¯ll message me back, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡± Carlos answered quickly and honestly, but in the back of his mind, he was perplexed by the line of questioning.


    ¡°Everyday.¡± Haley spoke adamantly.


    ¡°...You want me to call you everyday you¡¯re gone?¡± Haley nodded. ¡°Why? I mean, is that even possible? Can you even do that inside a Dungeon?¡±


    ¡°I could kill all those bears in less than half an hour.¡±


    ¡°What about other Dungeons? What if they are not always going to be bears?¡± Haley wore a shocked expression.


    ¡°Right¡­I have to clear every Dungeon in a day¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, no, you don¡¯t.¡± Carlos wondered if maybe he should resume his initial argument about safety.


    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll do it!¡± Haley grabbed Carlos tightly by his arms. ¡°Make sure you never forget! Okay!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, okay.¡± Haley let go and Carlos got ready to leave again. ¡°Good night, Haley.¡± Before he took two steps, Haley grabbed him again. ¡°What?¡± Carlos turned around and saw that she had her phone out as well.


    ¡°Fifteen more seconds. Just stay there for fif- twelve more seconds.¡± Carlos was confused but compliant. Twelve more seconds went by, but Haley still did not let go. She just continued to look at him expectantly. Then, Carlos finally had a thought cross his mind. At first, he couldn¡¯t even believe he was thinking about that, but could it be anything else?


    ¡°Happy Birthday, Haley.¡± Haley smiled at him and let him go.


    ¡°Thanks!¡± The two finally parted and they went home.

 Learning about Dungeoneers (Skills)

    Video uploaded on November 12, 2023.


    ¡°Hello, Zack Liner here! As all my viewers should already know, I was a former journalist working for the Earth Alliance news branch. I¡¯m not going to bog you down with the specifics on that, but many of you are probably familiar with the various articles I wrote about Dungeons and Dungeoneers,¡± the man opened in a casual, friendly tone. The video showed a mostly blank white screen. In the corner was the webcam footage of a man with messy black hair and wearing a mask that covered his nose and mouth.


    ¡°Well, today, I wanted to do somewhat of a special video for today! You see, I¡¯ve been getting more comments lately thinking that I go through the things a little too quickly and although you all have at least a bit of general knowledge, unless you, or someone close to you is a Dungeoneer, there is actually quite a bit of niche information. So, sorry if you have been a bit confused so far, but I am going to make it up to you by breaking down everything that you need to know about Dungeons and Dungeoneers¡­sounds like a game doesn¡¯t it?¡±


    The blank white screen suddenly showed the word ¡°Skills¡± in large, bold text.


    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get started. So, the first thing I want to cover in this series are Skills. To explain them simply, Skills are special abilities or attributes that provide some sort of benefit to Dungeoneers. There are also some Skills that have drawbacks as well. Now, the best way I could think of to explain Skills to you is to go over the progression and how you acquire them as a Dungeoneer.


    The next screen showed a small stick figure man. Above the stick man was an arrow pointing at him, and the words ¡°New Dungeoneer¡±.


    ¡°So, this is a new Dungeoneer. Someone who just recently got the mark of a Dungeoneer.¡± The screen now shows a few boxes in the corner, each containing a different shape. ¡°A Dungeoneer¡¯s mark can look like almost anything, and can be something as simple as a cross or something much more complicated than that. For example, the Ruler of the East has the pattern of a dragon that spans across her shoulders and upper back. Well, it probably still looks like that. It¡¯s been a while since there have been any public photos of her that show that part of her body¡­we can talk about her specifically in another video maybe.¡±


    The screen now showed another arrow, pointing to the stick man from the side. This one ended with the words ¡°First Skills¡±.


    ¡°So, in addition to receiving a mark, they will also acquire their first Skills. From what we know, you get either two or three Skills as your first Skills. These Skills can vary greatly and the data we have available shows that although sometimes the first Skills seem to be well-suited for a Dungeoneer¡¯s character or personality, they also sometimes just seem completely random. In any case, these Skills will greatly affect how easily you can progress as a Dungeoneer.¡±


    The screen transitioned to a new page titled ¡°Skill Rarity¡±.


    ¡°So, when the first Dungeoneers realized that they could view their own Status, they were able to see all of their Stats and Skills all at once. The organization apparently varies from person to person, but they all say it is easy to read and understand. Next to each Skill name, there are apparently a number of stars, ranging from one to five. You may have heard the skills described by their star-rating, but calling them by a rarity name is also common.


    The screen showed the following five rows.


    1 star: Common


    2 stars: Uncommon


    3 stars: Rare


    4 stars: Special


    5 stars: Unique


    ¡°The 5 star Skills are really interesting because they are exactly as their rarity name suggests. They are Unique, meaning they are one-of-a-kind. No other Dungeoneer in the world possesses the exact same Skill. They also tend to be much more powerful than Skills of lower rarity. I will note, however, that rarity is not everything. Some argue that certain Skills are more useful, if not necessarily stronger, than certain other lower rarity Skills. And within the same rarity, their use also varies greatly. Here are some examples of Skills at each rarity.¡±Stolen novel; please report.


    Unarmed Combat Training (common)


    Mental Resistance (uncommon)


    Insight (rare)


    Layered Defense (special)


    Comet! Shooting Star that Splits Heaven and Earth (unique)


    ¡°And yes, that Unique Skill¡¯s name is apparently exactly that, according to the Dungeoneer herself. And even if it isn¡¯t, let¡¯s just pretend it is because, personally, I think it¡¯s hilarious.¡±


    Zack skipped to the next page, but then quickly went back.


    ¡°Oh, and for some added context on the rarities, I guess I can describe these particular Skills. Unarmed Combat Training does basically what you expect. It gives you knowledge and reflexes akin to someone who has some level of unarmed combat training. Mental Resistance is mainly known for allowing one to remain calm in stressful situations, but it also helps against attacks that target the mind, since some monsters are known to use psychic attacks. Insight is considered one of the most useful Rare Skills that do not directly make you stronger. Putting it kind of simply, it lets you more effectively analyze information and the environment around you. For people unused to fighting, it is very useful.¡±


    Zack turned away from the camera and took a sip of water.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see, well, Layered Defense is pretty interesting since it is a Skill with a drawback. It increases your Defense stat by a lot, I think 50% at Rank D, but it goes up even more as the Rank increases. However, after taking a certain amount of damage, you temporarily lose the buff and your base Defense drops to half. Finally, there is Comet! Shooting Star that Splits Heaven and Earth!¡± Zack said excitedly. ¡°This is such a great Skill name. I wish I knew what exactly it did, because the only thing confirmed about it is that it lets you summon flying orbs made of some sort of semi-tangible type of energy or magic. Hmmm, well, I have some speculations but I want to just stick to the facts here.¡±


    Zack went to the next slide, which was titled ¡°Skill Progression¡±. Under the title were two boxes. The left box had the words ¡°Acquiring Skills¡± and the right box had the words ¡°Ranking up Skills¡±.


    ¡°First there is acquiring Skills. After those first Skills, you can also acquire Skills in a variety of different ways. You can fight monsters, train your body, meditate, or even study. Acquiring Skills through these activities are not that high though. However, there are fixed milestones in which you will automatically gain new Skills. This is when you reach certain milestones in your Stats.¡±


    The following rows appeared under ¡°Acquiring Skills¡±.


    10 points in any Stat: between one to three Skills


    100 points in any Stat: between one to three Skills


    500 points in any Stat: between one to three Skills


    2500 points in any Stat: between one to three Skills


    ¡°The first time one of your Stats reaches one of those milestones, you automatically acquire new Skills. To clarify, this is for the first time only, meaning, if say, after reaching 10 Strength, you would not gain more Skills after reaching 10 Defense. Oh, and these are the five main Stats.


    The screen showed the following sentence: Strength, Defense, Stamina, Dexterity, Magic.


    ¡°I thought about making a video on Stats, but I think it¡¯s pretty self-explanatory from the names. And yeah, the higher the number, the more of that Stat you have. Although, it apparently is not linear. It varies from person to person, but it¡¯s a slow exponential growth curve. The factor ranges from around 1.01 to 1.09. Okay, I am not going to go any further into that, so just know that those are the main Stats, and that¡¯s good enough.¡±


    The screen now showed the following, underneath ¡°Ranking up Skills¡±.


    Common, uncommon, and rare: D - C - B - A


    Special: D - C - B - A - A+ - S


    Unique: C - B - A - A+ - S


    Common - Uncommon - Rare - Special - Unique?


    ¡°Hmmm, this looks more confusing than I thought it would¡­anyways, each Skill, no matter its rarity, has a Rank. It goes from D to A for common, uncommon, and rare Skills, and then continues to S for Special and Unique Skills. You will notice that there is actually an A+ rank after A and that there are no D rank Unique Skills¡­there¡¯s not much more to say on that matter than that. Finally, certain Skills can actually increase in rarity after progressing past its highest Rank of the previous rarity. For example, Unarmed Combat Training A could rank up to Unarmed Combat Arts D. Most Skills don¡¯t work like that, though. Also, there isn¡¯t any known example of any particular Special Skill ranking up to a new Unique Skill. I guess that makes sense; they are one of a kind, after all.¡±


    Zack¡¯s next slide was titled ¡°The End¡±, and it had another stick man figure, but this one was drawn noticeably larger than the first one and had something like a flame-like aura radiating from it. Probably. It was a really simple drawing.


    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s the end of this video. I¡­uh, wasn¡¯t sure what to put here so I decided to draw this at the end.¡± Zack paused for a second. ¡°Let me explain it anyway. See, look, this is the veteran Dungeoneer. He- or she is very powerful now, with lots of Skills and likely several high-rarity ones among them. For any of my viewers that happen to be Dungeoneers stuck in D- rank, but still dream of becoming a famous Dungeoneer, you can do it. There are a lot of cases of Dungeoneers suddenly climbing the ranks so if it¡¯s something you really want to do, don¡¯t give up. Ah, but please also don¡¯t do anything reckless, either. A lot of Dungeoneers have also unfortunately died fighting the monsters, even some higher rank ones.¡± Another awkward pause. ¡°All right, that¡¯s all from me. Thanks for watching and I¡¯ll see you all next time! Zack Liner, signing off.¡±

 Earth Alliance News (Article 1)

    Article Publication Date: May 10, 2020


    After the initial outbreak on March 12, Dungeons continued to manifest throughout the world, with more than a hundred appearing in a day, about once every three days. However, unlike the first day, the red portals which served as the entrance and exit to the Dungeons did not immediately spawn monsters. Instead, there was a 48 hour timer for each of these later Dungeons. Inside the dungeons, the monsters were generally less aggressive, and thus were easier to fight against. The Dungeon Boss was also in a separate area so there was no risk of having to fight the Dungeon Boss and the other monsters at the same time.


    Another difference was that if monsters are killed in the Dungeon, they actually drop items, just like a typical rpg. The smaller monsters typically only dropped D-rank Monster Cores, which were categorized as Common rarity. No other items at the time shared this rarity. There was also a small chance of dropping an additional Rare item. These included rings that raised a Stat while equipped, and potions that could heal your injuries or recover your mana. Despite them all being Rare items, the Dungeoneers that luckily acquired them viewed the rings as much more valuable than the single-use potions. The D-rank Dungeon Boss Cores were Uncommon items, and at this time, no other items shared this rarity. D-rank Dungeon Bosses were guaranteed to drop an additional Rare or Super Rare item. Super Rare items included rings that gave greater buffs, as well as various different types of equipment such as weapons and armour.


    The world became even more chaotic after the second day of Dungeon manifestations. For one, the pair of Prussian Dungeoneers who cleared a Dungeon first (called Dungeoneers because they entered and cleared a Dungeon) set a dangerous precedent. Companies and governments around the world were driven to try to obtain these items for themselves in order to study them, and hopefully learn more about the Dungeons and monsters, as well as possibly fulfilling a more profit-driven desire. As such, many governments quickly dispatched various elite forces to clear the Dungeons.


    To the surprise of some, one could enter the Dungeon even if they were a regular human. Some elite human squadrons did succeed in clearing the Dungeons, but others did not. The regular humans could not bring in any vehicles, and could only carry a limited amount of armaments. There were only so many grenades or grenade launchers they could bring with them to kill the Dungeon Boss while also carrying the guns and ammunition needed to deal with the common monsters. Even worse, it was discovered shortly afterwards that entering the Dungeons was not only very harmful to regular humans, but potentially fatal. Regular humans who entered and left the Dungeons suffered from symptoms similar to those exposed to high levels of radiation. Regular humans who spent more than a few hours in the Dungeons were almost sure to die within the week despite the best medical treatment. Even just an hour could leave one hospitalized and permanently weakened.


    Many governments were not initially inclined to cooperate with Dungeoneers that were not already working for them, but the results of the first excursions into the Dungeons changed most of their minds. However, this is where the dangerous precedent came into play. Even with the max occupancy of ten, a team of ten Dungeoneers with no prior combat experience were arguably less effective than special forces operatives. When the Dungeoneers were still armed to the teeth, they could clear it, but if not, the results often led to casualties, and in some cases, even a total party kill. The Prussian pair were clearly extraordinary even among Dungeoneers, they thought. As such, many countries that lacked notable Dungeoneers chose to instead let the outbreak occur so that they could deal with the monsters without restrictions. This also gave up the possibility of item drops, but even now, their value is tenuous. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    On the topic of extraordinary Dungeoneers, who could forget Sierra Madrazo from Colombo who travelled across the border to a neighbouring country in order to solo a Dungeon, breaking past police barricades in the process. She is potentially even more extraordinary and extremely bold to say the least. And if you were to not hold back on your words, probably crazy. After clearing the Dungeon, a firefight ensued as she resisted arrest. Well, they shot bullets at her. A lot of them. But they didn¡¯t work and she went home. An extradition order for her detention was made to Colombo, but it was subsequently rejected. Since then, she has illegally entered three more Dungeons. She was also legally allowed to enter a two more Dungeons which manifested in Colombo. She is currently wanted in three different countries. As another interesting note, Colombo does not unilaterally deny entry of other countries¡¯ authorities that want to arrest her in Colombo. They have just failed to succeed thus far.


    By the end of the month of Dungeon manifestations, amidst total deaths relating to Dungeons exceeding 20,000, and the sudden claim to fame of several Dungeoneers, the Earth Alliance completed the first draft for the Uniform Guidelines to Dungeon Management for its member nations. A link to the most recently revised guidelines are provided below, but for the most part, the guidelines pertain to registration and identification of both Dungeons and Dungeoneers, restrictions against Dungeoneers entering active military service, Dungeoneer safety and insurance, and rules for redistributing item drops.


    As of today, it has been exactly 29 days since the last reported Dungeon manifestation. The EA member nations have implemented some of the guidelines such as registration systems and they have agreed on enacting a special tax on all item drops. The exact tax amounts are still being negotiated. Various countries and large corporations around the world have started vying for the attention of the most notable Dungeoneers, attempting to entice them into relocating or doing business with them, and there is now a global market for Dungeon item drops. On this market, Monster Cores go for around $800 and Dungeon Boss Cores can sell for about a hundred times that amount, and this is despite the fact that there is still no known use for either of them.


    During this time of relative calm, research continues into the inner workings of these magic items and some clinical trials are also being run on Dungeoneers, although limited in number due to a lack of willing participants. During this peacetime, some nations have even voiced the opinions of rejecting the Uniform Guidelines and one even going so far as to suggest segregating Dungeons from the rest of the population. One argument for holding such opinions is in the belief that the calamity has faded, or at least, that even if it were to resurge, the current adaptations already made would be sufficient in dealing with new Dungeons. To that, I would like to just point at one thing. These were D-rank Dungeons containing D-rank monsters. I do not know when a second wave will occur, or if that second wave will be the same sort of Dungeons, but I believe most will agree with me that higher rank Dungeons will occur. The Dungeoneers of today may very likely be our future heroes and I hope we take the steps now to ensure all of humanity cooperatively works towards the best future we can have.


    Zack Liner

 The Four Suits (Part 1)

    Date: May 11, 2020 - 8:15 pm


    Location: West Byzantine


    Inside of the meeting room were two couches opposite each other, with a glass table in between. On the glass table was a bottle of wine and four wine glasses, mostly filled. On one couch, there were two men wearing suits, and on the other, there was a single, much younger-looking man, also wearing a suit. There were also four other men standing by the couch of the two men, also dressed in suits, but of inferior quality. They had their hands together, and their sunglasses hid their stares. By the side of the lone, sitting man was a young woman, also wearing a suit, talking on her cell phone. The lone man sipped the glass of wine that was offered to him as the woman concluded the call.


    ¡°Are you finished now?¡± asked one of the older men on the couches. Despite the words used, his tone did not convey any anger or sarcasm.


    ¡°It was an important call,¡± she responded, as she took a seat next to the young man.


    ¡°Much more important than this meeting?¡± the second older man asked.


    ¡°Yes,¡± she replied, without hesitation.


    ¡°And also not important enough for all of you to show up?¡± the second older man''s anger was obvious in his voice.


    ¡°Yes,¡± she replied again immediately. The second man looked just about ready to get out of his seat, but the first one held him back.


    ¡°Settle down, Niccolo.¡± The words seemed to have no effect as he continued to resist. ¡°Just wait¡­okay?¡± These words seemed to do the trick and Niccolo settled back down.


    ¡°So, can we start now?¡± the woman asked. The first man preemptively put his hand down on Niccolo again.


    ¡°Yes, of course.¡± The first man took out a folder and passed it across the table. ¡°You are probably already aware, Valentina, but our boss is quite pleased with your results thus far. In there, you will find the exact terms that he would like to offer you for a closer, long-term relationship. And, of course, similar terms are being extended to your siblings.¡± Valentina opened up the folder and looked through the papers, but didn¡¯t seem to be reading them.


    ¡°Did Antonio really write this?¡± she asked, as she put the papers back down.


    ¡°How dare you refer to the boss so casually!¡± Niccolo shouted at her, standing up before the first man could stop him. ¡°You should be thanking God to be so lucky to be in the position you are in right now!¡±


    ¡°Niccolo!¡± Niccolo ignored the first man.


    ¡°Your old man was pathetic and you four kids would be the lowest of the low if we didn¡¯t take you all in! Show some goddamn, fucking respect!¡± Niccolo took in a couple, angry breaths, his face beet red. Valentina wore a perfect poker face and just looked at the first man.


    ¡°Is he finished?¡± You could hear Niccolo grinding his teeth as he prepared to continue ranting, but the first man smacked him in the side.


    ¡°Niccolo, sit down.¡± Niccolo huffed and puffed a coupe more times before returning to his seat. The four men around them said nothing, but one could guess that they were all staring even more intently at Valentina now. The young man next to her took another nervous sip of wine.


    ¡°So, finished now?¡± Valentina asked. The first man pressed down hard on Niccolo¡¯s shoulder.


    ¡°Valentina, would I be correct in saying that you do not agree to the terms that we wish to offer you?¡±If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°May I ask if you have a counter offer?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s see.¡± Valentina pretended to think for a moment. ¡°Well, I think if you offer ten times as much, we can think about it.¡± The first man could barely hold Niccolo down. ¡°Oh, and I would like it if the contract would be for one week at a time, with a voluntary option for our renewal of the same terms.¡± Niccolo broke free from the first man and pulled a pistol out, pointing it at Valentina¡¯s head. The young man next to her looked to be shrinking into the couch, wine glass held in his two hands.


    ¡°You bitch! You think this is funny? You think you can just come in here, disrespect us and laugh everything off?¡± Valentina maintained her unreadable expression and looked Niccolo in the eyes.


    ¡°I¡¯m not laughing. Do you need to get your ears or eyes checked out?¡± Niccolo pulled the trigger, but the bullet missed as the first man got up and knocked his arm to the side. However, after he fired, the other four men also drew their guns and pointed them at Valentina and the man next to her. ¡°I had a feeling this is how you wanted to do things,¡± she commented.


    ¡°Valantina,¡± the first man spoke, and this time, the first hint of seething anger could be heard from him, ¡°we¡­I think all of us would prefer it if we could come to a peaceful agreement.¡± He motioned for the four standing men to put away their guns and they complied. ¡°Because you participated in the Dungeon raids on our behalf, we forgave the debts of you and your siblings in exchange for those cores you obtained. This is a genuine offer for you to work for the family.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I want to be part of a family that¡¯ll shoot me in the head while we¡¯re having wine.¡± She picked up a glass as she said this. ¡°But, if you give me that ten times payment, I think I can just chalk that up to being eccentric.¡±


    ¡°Valentina, I am very sorry about that. Niccolo has been with us for a very long time and loves the boss very much. I am not asking you to outright forgive, but to please understand. As for compensation for this incident, I am willing to convey to the boss that you would prefer better terms. However, please also understand that this really is a generous offer and that ten times is asking for far too much.¡±


    ¡°Marco,¡± Valentina began, ¡°you can go and tell Antonio whatever you want regard this,¡± she pointed at the papers, ¡°but, those really are the minimum terms we are seriously willing to consider.¡±


    ¡°You bitch! How can you be so ungrateful¡± Niccolo roared at her, but with Marco holding onto him, he at least did not point his pistol at her again. For the first time, Valentina smiled at him.


    ¡°This is what I think about your generous offer.¡± She poured the wine onto the papers. Even Marco could not mask his expression this time. However, he motioned with his hands again, seeming to already know the four others were planning to pull out their guns again.


    ¡°Valentina, I can see you think you are worth a lot. I agree. However, I do not think you are making the appropriate moves here.¡± Marco¡¯s tone was on the verge between cold and warm. ¡°If you are concerned about the current offer in the long-term, there are various other options we might be able to consider. Perhaps, reducing the length of the contract or negotiating for the potential of greater bonuses. At the very least, don¡¯t you think you should consider your siblings before so flatly refusing this business opportunity.¡± Marco then looked at the young man. ¡°Why don¡¯t we also ask your brother what he thinks about this?¡±


    ¡°W- what?¡± the young man gasped. He nervously looked to his sister.


    ¡°Of course I considered my siblings¡¯ interests. Who else would care for them if not their eldest sister?¡± Valentina leaned over to her brother. ¡°Cuore, do you think we should be accepting their unreasonable offer that provides a pittance in exchange for our hard work?¡±


    ¡°You¡­bitch!¡± Niccolo actively struggled against Marco¡¯s hold on him.


    ¡°Uh¡­no, I don¡¯t think we should,¡± Cuore answered to Valentina. Marco looked at the two them with a stone face as he tightened his grip on Niccolo.


    ¡°Well, I am going to have to make my report to the boss.¡±


    ¡°Yes, you are.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want to say anything else?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I am sure.¡± Marco looked at Cuore again. He shook his head vigorously.


    ¡°I see.¡± Niccolo¡¯s struggles gradually weakened. ¡°Niccolo, go cool off with a glass of wine. Our guests will be leaving now.¡± Valentina put down her glass on top of the soiled papers and got up. Cuore also put down his glass, but near the center of the table.


    ¡°S- sorry,¡± he muttered, as his glass clinked against the table. The two siblings left. Niccolo sat down hard onto the couch and downed his glass in what gulp, spilling some of it onto his suit.


    ¡°Fucking brats,¡± he muttered, as he loosened his tie.


    ¡°Niccolo, you need to remember to control your temper in the future.¡± Niccolo looked at Marco incredulously.


    ¡°Are you serious? Did you not hear her saying the same shit I heard?!¡±


    ¡°I could hear you very well, despite your yelling. However, you know how few Dungeoneers there are in this nation, much less ones that have successfully cleared multiple Dungeons.¡±


    ¡°Three dungeons, Marco! Just three of them! There¡¯s at least a dozen of those around.¡±


    ¡°Five. Just five in all of West Byzantine. And four of them are those two and their other two siblings.¡±


    ¡°So, it¡¯s not like they cleared with just their bare hands. They were given tons of support.¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    ¡°There also hasn¡¯t been a Dungeon around her in more than a month.¡±


    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter, either. The boss knew what he was doing when he wanted us to bring them into the family.¡±


    ¡°He probably won¡¯t after we report back to him about what they said.¡± Niccolo poured himself another glass. At the same time, Marco¡¯s phone buzzed, notifying him that he received a message. He took a look while Niccolo drained the second glass.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be so sure about that.¡±


    ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± Niccolo asked as he wiped his mouth.


    ¡°Another portal was discovered. Just a hundred kilometres from here. It¡¯s also not a red one.¡±


    ¡°Huh, aren¡¯t they all red?¡±


    ¡°No, this one is orange.¡± Marco sat down and drank from his glass. ¡°It¡¯s C-rank.¡±

 The Four Suits (Part 2)

    Date: May 13, 2020 - 3:05 pm


    Location: West Byzantine


    More than twenty people gathered together in a conference room. At the head of the room, beside a projected screen, was one man seated behind a computer in charge of the presentation, and another man standing at a podium. Everyone else was seated around the conference table, and among them were Valentina and Cuore. There were also two others dressed in the same suits that sat beside Valentina, both of whom looked to be Valentina¡¯s younger sisters and also twins. They both had the same slightly curly brown hair and light green eyes. The two twins chatted with each other while Cuore sat in nervous silence and Valentina stared ahead, waiting for the presentation to start. After another few moments, one more person entered the conference room and after he seated himself, the man at the podium cleared his throat.


    ¡°Alright, I will begin now.¡± The remaining chatter died down. ¡°First, I would like to thank you all for coming here. Everyone participating here, today, is doing a remarkable service not for West Byzantine, but the world at large.¡± The presenter looked at the one by the computer, indicating it was time to go to the next slide. The slide read: Earth Alliance.


    ¡°Now, as you are all aware, all member nations of the Earth Alliance have agreed to follow Uniform Guidelines. In addition, many nations have agreed to an even closer level of cooperation, for the sake of more consistent work and safer standards for Dungeoneers.¡± The presenter paused, as if expecting some audible agreement. There was none. ¡°I am Terry Lundquist, a special representative of the Earth Alliance that also works with Dungeon oversight in West Byzantine.¡±


    The next slide was titled: C-rank Dungeon


    ¡°Now, as you should already be aware, this second wave of Dungeons are different from the first. First of all, and most thankfully, these Dungeons were not already in the outbreak stage and no monsters have exited them thus far. Second, the portals that serve as the Dungeon entrances and exits are orange in colour. They are also larger than the red ones. These orange ones, like the red ones, are oval in shape and are above twice as large in terms of width and length. This means they are about 4m at its longest, going up and down, and 3m at its widest, going left to right.¡±


    The slide showed a depiction of the portal and its dimensions.


    ¡°Just like the red portals, these orange portals do not show up on any type of photographing or video recording.¡±


    The slide now showed a box next to the portal. The box had the following rows.


    Dungeon Information


    Rank: C


    Max Occupancy: 20


    Time Remaining until outbreak: 96 hours


    ¡°The 96 hours timer is what we believe to be an accurate estimate. The portal was first discovered yesterday night at around 8pm. Currently, the exact time of the Dungeon outbreak would be May 16 at 7:51 pm. This means we have a little more than 3 days remaining.¡±


    The next slide then updated to show a circle drawn around the number ¡°20¡±.


    ¡°In addition to the time of outbreak doubling, the max occupancy has also doubled. This next assumption is much less solid, but we believe that a C-rank Dungeon is expected to be four times as difficult as a D-rank Dungeon, since both factors in clearing a Dungeon have been doubled. What we do not know is how it would be four times as difficult. Would this simply be a numerical increase in the monsters, or an increase in the Stats of the monsters? Maybe both? Also, would these C-rank monsters have the same build or appearance as the D-rank monsters. All D-rank monsters and Dungeon Bosses were nearly identical, taking on the appearance similar to bears, but having slight differences in their red patterning, according to some reports. Unfortunately, the reports are based on eyewitness testimonies alone as, just like the portals, it was impossible to capture them in photographs or video recordings.¡±


    The next slide came up now, with the title of ¡°Strategy¡±.


    ¡°Now, onto the most important part. The portal has appeared on the second floor of a major shopping mall. All civilians have since been evacuated and the whole area within two blocks have been cordoned off. The military has also been contacted, and they can arrive in time before the time of the outbreak, alongside tanks and other heavy artillery. If absolutely necessary, the West Byzantine government is considering sacrificing the entire shopping mall and everything else within one city block to deal with the potential outbreak.¡±


    ¡°If you are just going to do that, then what do you need us for?¡± one of the audience members asked.


    ¡°I said they were considering this. It has not been approved yet. Also, this is exactly where you Dungeoneers come into play. Due to massive infrastructural damage likely from this course of action, the government and the Earth Alliance would prefer it if the Dungeon could be cleared within the time limit.¡±


    ¡°So, you want to send us in blind to avoid losing a bunch of money from blowing up the mall?¡± a different person asked.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    ¡°No, no, it is not like that. There is a good reason to consider this alternative. First, as reported from the D-rank portals, the common monsters behave less aggressively than during an outbreak. This makes hunting them easier and more efficient. Second, there is something like a safe zone within the Dungeon immediately around the portal¡¯s area. If the monsters prove to be too much to handle in the Dungeon, you may immediately retreat back to the safe zone and exit when the time limit runs out. As we have already seen from some failed attempts at D-rank Dungeon clears in the past, this is possible. Clearing the Dungeon also removes the possibility of monsters escaping the containment and potentially reaching civilians.¡±


    ¡°It still just seems easier to just let the outbreak happen so the military can deal with it. We have no idea what¡¯s in there so who knows if we could run away in time. But, for the military, I¡¯m sure they can handle it if they can bring in a bunch of tanks. I mean, there¡¯s three whole days this time. No rush for them, right?¡± a different person asked.


    ¡°Of course, we have no issue if those are your thoughts on the matter. Dungeoneer safety is a priority for the Earth Alliance. At no point do we want any of you Dungeoneers to think you are being forced into a dangerous situation.¡±


    ¡°Just get on with it. What¡¯s in it for us, here?¡± Terry Lundquist cleared his throat before answering.


    ¡°Of course, there will be adequate compensation provided should you decide to participate in clearing the Dungeon. As this is the first C-rank Dungeon, and no information is available on what lies inside, every participant will receive $5,000 at base. This will be paid to you regardless of whether or not you succeed in clearing the Dungeon.¡± There was no reaction from the audience for this. ¡°In addition, the special tax on all item drops will be waived for this Dungeon clearing attempt.¡±


    ¡°Oh!¡± one of the audience members suddenly blurted out.


    ¡°Hold on, for item drops, is it just for whoever gets the item? What if something hogs all the kills?¡± This particular audience member seemed to be looking at Valentina when she asked her question.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious that the ones who do the most work receive the most rewards?¡± Valentina responded.


    ¡°Although I can understand that sentiment, Miss¡­¡±


    ¡°Giocondo.¡±


    ¡°Miss Giocondo¡­¡± Terry seemed to recall who she was now, ¡°The Earth Alliance wants to promote as much friendly cooperation among Dungeoneers as possible. Therefore, before the Dungeon raid, we will require all participating Dungeoneers to allow the other Dungeoneers to view their Inventory.¡± There was a clear sound of dissent from some of the audience. ¡°This is so we can record the Inventory of each Dungeoneer. Then, after the Dungeon is cleared, all participants must allow the other Dungeoneers to view their inventory again so that any changes can be recorded. The total increase in any new item drops will then be evenly divided amongst all Dungeoneers. Where the amount can not be perfectly divided, the difference will be made up based on the current market value of the items.¡±


    ¡°What if it¡¯s a new item that has no current market value?¡±


    ¡°All participating Dungeoneers may bid on the item, and whomever bids the most can effectively buy the item and retain its ownership, but only after paying the bid price to all remaining participants. With the exception of their share, of course. Also, to reduce the chances of someone winning merely because they have more cash on hand, in this instance, the amounts to be paid to the others can be done so within 30 days, providing time for the bidder to earn more money from selling off their other items or to obtain a loan.


    The slides skipped forward to that section.


    ¡°What if nobody wants to buy the item?¡±


    ¡°Is there really a magic item that you would not be willing to pay even a dollar for?¡±


    ¡°Uh,¡± the audience looked prepared to argue further, but after thinking for another few seconds, decided to not.


    ¡°What if we die?¡± The slides skipped forward again but the presenter took a moment before answering.


    ¡°Of course, the death of any participant is the result we wish to avoid the most. But, if such an unfortunate accident were to occur, you will still be paid as if you were still alive, but the amounts would be paid to your estate. And, in this special circumstance, there will be no taxes paid on these amounts transferred from your estate to your beneficiaries. Although, I would normally advise against thinking about the possibility of your death, you may wish to take some time to think about leaving a will or amending your current will.¡± There was a moment of silence.


    ¡°You said that the base pay was $5,000. Does that mean there is more if we clear the Dungeon?¡± Valentina asked.


    ¡°Uh, yes.¡± More flipping of slides. ¡°You will all receive additional compensation for each monster the entire party hunts. For a successful clear, you will receive an additional $20,000 each.¡±


    ¡°That seems awfully cheap considering the alternative would be blasting down the whole mall with tanks.¡±


    ¡°We expect the bulk of your compensation to come from the item drops,¡± was his response.


    ¡°As far as I am concerned, the item drops should naturally be ours. They wouldn¡¯t even exist if you killed the monsters outside of the Dungeon.¡± Before the presenter could argue back, the man who came in late spoke up.


    ¡°That¡¯s right, you are hardly giving us, shit. Whatever we go in to fight with is coming out of our pockets, isn¡¯t that right?¡±


    ¡°The base pay will be provided to the participants in advance of the raid for them to buy whatever supplies they will need in the Dungeon.¡±


    ¡°And how much is that going to get us? A camping set?¡± The presenter tried to counter, but the man continued. ¡°You want us to take care of this situation for just half a million? For just half a million, you don¡¯t have to send in tanks or blow up a mall. How cheap can you get? Forget it, I¡¯m out.¡± The man stood up to leave.


    ¡°W- wait!¡± the presenter stammered as Valentina got up as well.


    ¡°This has apparently been a waste of time.¡± Valentina¡¯s siblings got up as well, Cuore being a bit slower on the uptake than the others. ¡°Well, I guess it¡¯ll still be fun to see you guys blowing up that mall on the news in three days.¡± The late man waited by the door as the other four came along.


    ¡°I¡¯m not dying for nothing, either!¡± someone else said as they stood up. A few others nodded in agreement and also prepared to leave.


    ¡°P- please! Don¡¯t leave! As we have explained, your safety-¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t guaranteed at all,¡± Valentina interrupted. ¡°You said it yourself, you have no idea what could be in there. Would you step out onto another planet without any equipment for just $5,000?¡± There was hearty agreement from almost the entire audience. The Dungeoneers left the room amidst the presenters ignored pleas. All except for one. After the rest left the presenter put his hands into his face. After a few moments, the lone, remaining Dungeoneer spoke up.


    ¡°Um, will the clear attempt still be made if I am the only one?¡± he asked. The presenter pulled his hands off his face.


    ¡°W- well¡­a full twenty Dungeoneer party isn¡¯t required¡­especially since all previous Dungeons only had a max occupancy of ten. Although, after several incidents, a mandate for having ten Dungeoneers before a clear attempt has been incorporated into the Uniform Guidelines¡­¡±


    ¡°So, we would at least ten?¡¯


    ¡°Technically, yes¡­um, are you suggesting that you could clear the Dungeon by yourself?¡± The presenter had a glimmer of hope. ¡°What¡¯s your record? Your name?¡±


    ¡°Oh, no, I don¡¯t think I could do it myself. I¡¯ve only been to one and my name is Luigi Gallo¡­I just could use the $5,000.¡± The presenter slumped onto the podium.


    ¡°I need to make a call,¡± the presenter muttered.


    After several phone calls and a lot of yelling, arrangements were made. The Dungeoneers were then informed that the base pay had been increased to $20,000, and the bonus for successfully clearing the Dungeon increased to $180,000. With twenty Dungeoneers now willing to participate, the raid attempt was set for tomorrow afternoon.

 The Four Suits (Part 3)

    Date: May 14, 2020 - 1:56 pm


    Location: West Byzantine


    On the second floor of one of West Byzantine¡¯s largest shopping malls, was a large orange portal, and twenty-one other people gathered around it, two of them working for the Earth Alliance. They brought over tables and chairs from the nearby food court and waited. The Dungeoneers chat amongst themselves, many of them nervous, and several of them attempting to hide that nervousness. Even Valentina was speaking with the late man from yesterday.


    ¡°So, how many of these people do you think will survive?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Who knows? If the monsters are slow enough, maybe all of them.¡± He laughed at her answer.


    ¡°Yeah, maybe. Maybe today¡¯s their lucky day. If it¡¯s just a bunch more of those bears, I¡¯d be enough just by myself. That way, they¡¯ll all get that $200,000 payday.¡± He laughed again. ¡°Ah, good play, by the way. I was bluffing about leaving, but with you saying you were going to leave as well, I knew they¡¯d cave in. We¡¯re the Dungeoneers with the best records after all. There¡¯s no way they could go ahead with this plan without us.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s three more minutes left,¡± she said, looking at her watch and now ignoring the other man. ¡°I wonder if we¡¯ll be going with just nineteen.¡± The man laughed again.


    ¡°That just means a bigger share of the item drops.¡± The man looked around him and then said in a louder voice, ¡°honestly, it¡¯d probably be better if the weaker Dungeoneers here just left.¡± A couple scowled at him, but most of the others just looked away. This man was Franceso Ricci, and at this point, among the nation¡¯s Dungeoneers, his reputation preceded him. He was the only other Dungeoneer in West Byzantine other than the Giocondo siblings to have participated in three successful Dungeon clears.


    ¡°Well, they could still serve as body blockers.¡± Valentina always spoke without an ounce of sarcasm, and although some might prefer forward speakers, most didn¡¯t think very highly her personality. ¡°Looks like the last one made it,¡± she said, as Luigi Gallo finally arrived, nearly breathless.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry! I was eating lunch, but then-¡±


    ¡°Hurry up and give permission to view your Inventory so we can get on with it,¡± Valentina interrupted.


    ¡°Ah, um, yes, yes, of course!¡± The other Dungeoneers checked his Inventory and one of the Earth Alliance personnel recorded it. After that, the twenty Dungeoneers entered the C-rank Dungeon. Altogether, there were five Dungeoneers that cleared three Dungeons, seven Dungeoneers that cleared two Dungeons, and eight Dungeoneers that cleared one.


    On the other side of the portal, the party found themselves surrounded by grass again. This time, though, it was clear of any bushes or any other overgrowth. In fact, it was completely flat for miles. In the distance, though, they could see two mountains.


    ¡°I guess this Dungeon¡¯s going to require a lot more walking,¡± Francesco commented. Everyone ignored his comment as Valentina took the first step forward.


    ¡°No point in just wasting time, here.¡± Francesco laughed at her words and followed after.


    After about four hours of walking, they finally reached the base of one of the mountains. Looking above, it appeared like there was something connecting the two mountains to each other. It was too high up to see it very clearly, but it looked to be something like a bridge. After scanning at the rest of the party, and perhaps taking note that some of them looked tired from the trek, Valentina suggested that they take a break before continuing. Everyone agreed. The Dungeoneers sat down on the grass and many of them took out snacks to eat. The Dungeoneers who raided together naturally ended up sitting together, which meant that Francesco sat with the Giocondo siblings, having participated together with them in a single raid.


    ¡°Ah, a D-rank Dungeon would have finished by now. Ah, I probably could have finished three of them by now. Don¡¯t you think so?¡± Francesco asked Valentina. A little ways away were the other three siblings, the two twins intimately chatting with each other while Cuore looked down at the ground in silence.


    ¡°Only?¡± Valentina responded. He gave his usual laugh. Suddenly, the mysterious sunlight above them started to dim. This was highly unusual, as it always seemed to be daytime in all the D-rank Dungeons, regardless of the time one entered them. ¡°Another variable,¡± she commented.


    ¡°Wow, is there actually going to be night and day in this Dungeon? Guess it was a good idea I actually brought a camping set in my Inventory.¡± Valentina said nothing as she pulled out a notepad from her Inventory to make a note. ¡°You know, personally, I don¡¯t think I¡¯m the biggest fan of strong, silent, beauty.¡± She just continued writing. ¡°Well, not all the time. But, at least when it¡¯s just me and her, I¡¯d prefer if she acted more maidenly.¡± Still nothing. ¡°And in the bedroom¡­well, would you like to hear more?¡± Valentina finished writing, and put the notepad back into her Inventory. She looked past Francesco and stood up.


    ¡°Everybody, stop talking and listen.¡± The rest of the party complied, although Francesco looked a bit irritated. ¡°As I¡¯m sure you can tell, it gets darker in this Dungeon. Assuming time passes at the same rate in this Dungeon as on Earth, we should have a little more than two days left until the outbreak occurs. So, do you all think we should camp out here right now, or start climbing the mountain now, and see if we can find a wide enough space up there to camp later. You should also think about how we haven¡¯t encountered any monsters yet. It is possible that they are nocturnal. Also, be aware that the day and night cycle also might not be the same here as on Earth. Take the rest of the break to think about this.¡± Valentina then sat back down. Francesco leaned in close to whisper to her.


    ¡°You know¡­I¡¯ve heard that you are planning to cut ties with the Giovannizzis.¡± Valentina said nothing. ¡°Would I be right to say that you are looking for another group? One that could provide you with better terms? You know¡­I can help you with that. The group I work for is willing to pay you plenty. Much more than the Giovannazzis ever will. And, if this Dungeon clear has great enough results, I can even put in a good word for you to get you an even better deal.¡± Francesco brought his hand in close, caressing Valentina¡¯s hair with his fingers. ¡°You don¡¯t even have to work that hard. I will be sure to put in a good word for you¡­if you want me to.¡± Valentina looked at him, wearing her usual poker face. Then, she pushed his hand away.


    ¡°Tell your group that they can send an offer to us if they want. And also tell them that they don¡¯t need you to be the one to deliver it.¡± Francesco showed clear annoyance just as a shadow came over him. It wasn¡¯t from the night cycle, but from Valentina¡¯s three siblings who were now standing around them. Francesco¡¯s expression changed to bemusement and he laughed.Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be sure to do that.¡± Francesco got up. ¡°I guess it wouldn¡¯t be so bad for me to work for it a bit more than usual,¡± he said jovially. ¡°Come and find me later, though, if you would still like me to put in a good word for you.¡± He laughed again as he walked off. Valentina laid down on the grass and looked up at her siblings.


    ¡°What?¡± she asked them.


    ¡°S- sister,¡± Coure stuttered.


    ¡°You all look much too concerned.¡± She then patted down at the grass. ¡°Come, lay down with me. We don¡¯t often get the chance to relax like this.¡± They silently complied. After about a minute, Valentina¡¯s two youngest siblings started chatting with each other again. Cuore turned to face his sister.


    ¡°I- I think¡­um¡­I¡¯m worried¡­¡± Cuore struggled to string together a sentence.


    ¡°Worried about what? About this Dungeon?¡± Cuore didn¡¯t answer. ¡°About him?¡± she asked, pointing over at Francesco¡¯s general direction. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. He¡¯s a bastard, but if his group¡¯s really prepared to offer enough, I don¡¯t care if we have to work with him.¡± Cuore still said nothing. ¡°And I really just mean work.¡±


    ¡°O- okay¡­¡±


    ¡°And that goes for you as well. All of you. If some minx starts spouting some funny words to you, don¡¯t listen to her and tell me.¡±


    ¡°W- what?¡±


    ¡°Just don¡¯t fall for whatever some ditz, hag, or minx says to you. I caught one of those Dungeoneers giving you a look earlier.¡±


    ¡°W- what? Who?¡± he asked out of fear, not curiosity.


    ¡°Just keep your distance from all of them. For every one of them that makes it obvious, there¡¯s at least two others hiding it.¡±


    ¡°Ah¡­okay?¡± Valentina closed her eyes and rested.


    After about ten more minutes, Luigi came over to Valentina.


    ¡°Um¡­miss¡­¡± The two twins glared at him as Valentina opened her eyes.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°All the others said they are ready to vote now.¡± Valentina got up.


    ¡°Alright.¡±


    The Dungeoneers voted and the majority decided to rest at the base of the mountain and start hiking early the next morning. They then decided on the shift rotation for the night watch. There was a suggestion to have five different shifts, each one having one of the most veteran Dungeoneers in the shift. Valentina¡¯s siblings disagreed with that, and in the end they had four shifts, with one of the shifts having Cuore and Francesco on at the same time. The night passed by uneventfully, and they set off to reach the top of the mountain the next day.


    The mountain had a rather conspicuous path that winded around the mountain. The path had plenty of space to move together, and it was a rather comfortable hike at least for the first hour and a half. Then, they spotted something on the rocky walls above them. They were giant nests, and in them were creatures that looked like giant vultures. They had very similar features to their Earth counterparts, but they had orange plumage and glowing red eyes. The nesting vulture let out a cry that both sounded like a bird and yet didn¡¯t at the same time, and then came swooping down at them, revealing a wingspan of at least fifteen feet across. It attacked the closest Dungeoneer who fired at it with a pistol. The bullets impacted its body, but they were shallow blows. The vulture, relatively unperturbed by the gunshots, attempted to claw at the Dungeoneer. She attempted to dodge and the vulture¡¯s talons tore through her coat and lightly slashed her back as she narrowly escaped. Then, before the vulture could fly over to its next target, a spear shot through the air and pierced it in the chest. The spear went through completely and stuck into the wall behind it. The monster then turned into black mist. Francesco went over to recover his spear.


    ¡°Birds this time, huh?¡± Francesco said with a laugh. The other Dungeoneers seemed to relax, even the one who was attacked, who now just looked embarrassed as she got back up.


    ¡°Th- thank you, sir.¡±


    ¡°Just call me Francesco,¡± he said. Then he looked at the others. ¡°If the rest of you have anything better than regular guns, you better bring them out now.¡± Nobody did anything. ¡°Ah, I guess these are supposed to be Super Rare.¡± He was looking at Valentina when he said this. ¡°Well, just try not to die when they come at you, then, and I¡¯ll kill it off. That should be fine, right? We are sharing all the loot anyways.¡± Most of the Dungeoneers seemed to be in agreement, but not Valentina.


    ¡°Well, we¡¯ll only let you kill it if it doesn¡¯t come over to our side.¡± Francesco paused for a second before laughing again.


    ¡°Of course! Not sure about the rest of them, but I¡¯m sure you would have no problem killing these things with just your bare hands even if they can fly.¡±


    The party continued up the mountain. They encountered many more giant vultures, but before they only came down one at a time from their nests, they were actually very easy to handle, despite the fact that bullets were much less effective on these monsters compared to D-rank monsters. True to her word, Valentina and her siblings were also killing them easily even without any weapons. Emboldened by the display, a few of the Dungeoneers that had cleared two Dungeons also attempted to slay them when they came at them, and were successful, however, they did struggle a bit. They had to exhaust multiple magazines, and even then, only one of them was successfully shot to death. The others still required a finishing melee blow.


    Another two hours went by and they were now about two thirds of the way up the mountain. They were now also at the point of the mountain where the bridge was. Seeing up close was a strange sight, as it appeared to be a normal rope bridge, and thus, other than the strange torches in the D-rank cave, was the first man-made object found in a Dungeon. Many of the Dungeoneers pondered about what this could mean, but Valentina cut those thoughts short.


    ¡°Everyone, listen up. As you can see, this bridge leads to the second mountain. So, we have to make a decision. Do you want to continue climbing up to the top of this mountain, or cross over to the other one? We can take a break in the meantime.¡± Everyone complied, having essentially accepted her as the leader of the party.


    During the break, a few of the other Dungeoneers bravely went over to try to talk to Valentina and her siblings. It was mainly to convey their thanks for their help and one of them was especially direct with her thanks and praise towards Cuore, who was too nervous to say anything in response. However, others noticed this and that only seemed to make them admire him even more.


    After the break, they voted and agreed on crossing the bridge. The general consensus seemed to be that they were guessing that there might actually be two Dungeon Bosses, one on either mountaintop. If this was the case, it would be better to spend the extra time to hunt down the remaining vultures on the other mountain first before fighting the Bosses.


    There was no wind blowing across the bridge, but it still swayed more than some would have liked as they made their way across. One doesn¡¯t need to have a fear of heights to be nervous crossing a very long and rickety rope bridge. Several minutes later, their bodies were all safely across, although not the nerves of some.


    As planned, they prepared to make their way down this mountain to hunt down some more vultures. However, that proved to be too difficult of a task. Unlike the other mountain, the path on this mountain did not slope up or down. It just went all around the mountain, and on the other side of where the bridge was, there was a cave. The party deliberated for a few minutes. After one of the Dungeoneers pointed out that this mountain actually appeared to be a bit smaller than the other one, they concluded that it was probably better to deal with this one first, and so they entered the cave.


    The inside of the cave sloped upwards and after walking for a few minutes under torchlight, the same kind as in the D-rank cave, the path eventually ended up being a hole in the corner of a wide cavern. In the center of the cavern was a large stone column at least a few hundred feet high with a stairwell that wound its way up around it. On the walls of the cavern were large holes. Hundreds of them. The party cautiously made their way to the stairwell. They paused for a moment before climbing it, on guard and waiting for something to happen. They looked up to the top of the column and they could see that the stairwell led to another opening. It appeared that this stairwell would lead to the hole of another, upper chamber. Although, maybe just as likely, there could also be another long stairwell. With nothing happening as they waited another minute, they finally decided to climb the stairs.


    Unlike the mountain path, these stairs were much narrower, only about five feet wide. Also, unlike the rope bridge, the stairwell had no railing. As they made their way further up, some of the Dungeoneers were noticeably shaking. Even with their Stats, would they be able to survive a fall from this height? As if anticipating this and attempting to do what little they can to assuage their concerns, Francesco led the party while Valentina brought up the rear. Her siblings were also spread out throughout the middle. With their Dexterity, it should be possible for them to catch them if they slip, is what some of the Dungeoneers thought. Whether they actually would or could, was a different matter, and varied from person to person.


    After crossing the halfway threshold, and right as some were starting to relax a bit, one could hear a sound other than their own breaths and steps. They ignored it and kept climbing. The sound was now much louder. It sounded like the clinking of metal plates. Still they climbed. Then, it sounded like mechanical whirring.


    ¡°C- could we climb a bit faster?¡± one of the Dungeoneers asked.


    ¡°Do you want me to run up ahead?¡± Francesco asked.


    ¡°Uh, not that far up.¡± As the two talked, the sound was much louder now, but not in a way as if it were coming closer. It sounded like the sound was coming from hundreds of different sources, all around them. ¡°Uh, I mean, sure. Yeah, let¡¯s just run.¡± The first of these sound sources came flying out of one of the holes, and it was soon joined by dozens more. And then, even more.

 The Four Suits (Part 4)

    Date: May 15? 2020 - 11:00 am?


    Location: West Byzantine? (C-rank Dungeon)


    They looked like large, mechanical owls. They had glowing red eyes and bodies seemingly made of steel. Although large, they were not nearly as giant as the vultures from earlier. In fact, the size of these owls were around the same as a true Earth counterpart, the Blakiston¡¯s fish owl, with a wingspan of six feet. None of Dungeoneers present knew about this owl fact, though, and assumed that they were much too big.


    Francesco began sprinting up the stairs. One by one, the other Dungeoneers sped up as the one in front started running. However, the mechanical owls arrived before even Francesco could get to the top. Although, this wasn¡¯t an issue for Francesco who could easily defend himself using his spear that instantly pierced through the owls¡¯ metal bodies when they came into range. Most of the other Dungeoneers attempted to shoot them down, but the bullets, for the most part, only dented their bodies. Once they got close enough, the owls started swooping at them, metal talons at the ready. Some of the stronger Dungeoneers gave up on their guns and tried punching or kicking them when they came in to attack, since there was hardly enough space to do any large dodges. To the surprise of some, if they properly connected the blow, they were able to crack their bodies and knock them away. Also, if their wings were too damaged, they then fell to the ground, where they smashed into pieces before turning into black mist. However, not every Dungeoneer was so successful in defending themselves.


    The Dungeoneer that was following Francesco was now much further away from him and was still desperately trying to gun down the owls. A shot finally hit one in the eye, but that didn¡¯t kill it. Damaged, the owl still flew right into the Dungeoneer¡¯s chest, knocking him off balance. The Dungeoneer, instead of finishing the owl off, tried to regain his balance, but the owl began to madly flap its wings and peck at him. The Dungeoneer stumbled as the owl attacked him and before he knew it, he slipped off the stairwell. Another Dungeoneer stared on in horror as he fell down.


    Just as the realization of impending death was about to sink in, Cuore grabbed his arm. He quickly pulled him back onto the stairwell as a trio of owls pecked, clawed, and smacked their wings at him. After getting the man back onto the stairs, Cuore then proceeded to grab them one at a time and break their bodies using both of his hands. Even more owls targeted him as he destroyed them, but their attacks were relatively ineffective. However, not wanting to take too many chances, Cuore kept his body low on the stairs and tried to keep his head looking down as well. The end result of more than a few dozen owls specifically attacking him were many cuts, scrapes and poked holes, but they were all minor injuries. Well, as far as his body was concerned. His clothes, on the other hand, were completely shredded. The sleeves of his suits were torn off completely and his shirt and pants looked like, well, like they were thrown to a group of birds that violently tore at them.


    As Cuore fought, his siblings did as well. Although similar in appearance, the twins fought quite differently. The older twin, Alessia, would simply simply destroy them with a single blow if they came at her alone. If there were multiple attackers at once, she used the minimal amount of movement to evade some while also knocking others away, ideally into the column if she could. Then, during the brief moment where there weren¡¯t any owls coming straight for her, she would finish off any owls within reach with a swift blow. As for the younger twin, Diamante, the fighting was quite a bit more crude. Diamante was even more unphased by the attacks than Cuore. No evidence of damage could be seen as the younger twin grabbed them and repeatedly smashed them against the stone column. It was a brutally unnecessary display as throwing them off after breaking one of their wings would have been sufficient. But, perhaps this was simply out of spite since they still ruined Diamante¡¯s suit.


    The party fought against the hundreds of owls and after about five minutes, the sounds of mechanical whirring and metal clinking came to an end. None of the Dungeoneers had fallen to their deaths, but several were quite badly injured. Surprisingly, the man who Cuore saved was one of the more lightly injured. His face and chest were cut up and bleeding and his shoulder had been nearly dislocated when Cuore pulled him up, but the pain didn¡¯t even register. He was just hysterical, still trying to process that he was alive. When he finally recovered enough to move, he thanked Cuore incessantly, sobbing heavily. Cuore still couldn¡¯t manage any proper words in response to this, and he simply tried to pat the man on the shoulder to console him. Which was a strange sight seeing as how Cuore¡¯s clothes made him look like he should be worse off than anyone else despite the fact all his injuries had already healed up completely. It healed much faster than even the uncommon Regeneration skill would have made possible but that was one of the last things most of the Dungeoneers were concerned about.


    ¡°Anyone dead down there?¡± Francesco asked from above, now about only twenty-five feet away from the very top of the stairs. There was only silence in response. ¡°Valentina, are you still alive?¡± He asked the question without an ounce of concern. He just wanted to hear what she would say, but she said nothing.


    ¡°We have some badly hurt over here,¡± one of them finally called out.


    ¡°Yes, over here, too!¡±


    ¡°We have two down near the back! One¡¯s barely conscious, he¡¯s lost a lot of blood!¡±


    ¡°Well, go ahead and treat them, then. Or not, up to you,¡± Francesco said back. ¡°I¡¯ll go see what¡¯s up top.¡± Francesco started walking up again.


    ¡°Stop!¡± Valentina commanded. Francesco did as she said.


    ¡°Ah, Valentina, so you are still alive! Or, are you a ghost now, and that¡¯s why you said nothing earlier?¡± Francesco laughed.


    ¡°Francesco, just wait a few moments until we get the injuries sorted out. Who knows what¡¯s going to happen next when you get to the top.¡±


    ¡°Alright, alright!¡± Francesco leaned against the column and waited.


    The matter of treatment was a little complicated. The party possessed some D-rank healing potions, but not enough for everyone who was seriously injured. Also, a couple Dungeoneers were reluctant to part with them. Desperate for treatment, the injured Dungeoneers promised to pay them back fully for the item once they were out of the Dungeon. However, there was still the problem of a lack of supply. The most heavily injured had helped out one of the Dungeoneers that actually had a healing potion so she quickly administered it to him, which stopped the bleeding, but unfortunately still left him in a near-death state. Another injured Dungeoneer used her own healing potion on herself. It seemed like an auction would ensue for the last two potions between the four remaining Dungeoneers, as well as another on behalf of the one who was still in critical condition.


    Cuore intervened, producing a C-rank healing potion that dropped from one of the owls he destroyed. He offered to use it on the Dungeoneer who, despite having already taken the D-rank potion before losing consciousness, was still in worse shape than the rest. After administering the C-rank healing potion, the deep gashes that covered his face, shoulders, arms and chest closed a fair bit but still was far short of being fully healed. However, colour returned to his formerly pale face and although no one was a doctor that could medically confirm, he seemed stable now. The other Dungeoneers looked to the other Giocondo siblings, silently asking if any of them had also received a similar item drop. They said nothing. Valentina was poker-faced as always, but the twins at least didn¡¯t seem to be too pleased about Cuore giving away his potion. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    Cuore received more thanks as a quick auction occurred for the two remaining D-rank potions. The two that lost would have to manage with just basic first aid treatment. Valentina, who had climbed up to check on her siblings, told Cuore and Diamante to go to the back and change into new clothes. Francesco audibly voiced his impatience, but Valentina simply told him he could go up by himself if he really wanted to. He was a bit annoyed, but after calmly thinking about it, he realized it was fine to wait a bit longer. As Cuore and Diamante changed into a new set of clothes from their Inventory, Valentina asked the group to make another decision.


    ¡°Alright, you have all just experienced for yourself how dangerous this Dungeon is. Never before has so many monsters attacked at once inside a Dungeon, and there is no way of knowing what is above us. Likely, the Boss is up there, or on an even higher floor above us. So, everyone who is too injured to fight, do you want to go up there? There might be flat ground to rest on better, or another horde of monsters might come out all at once again. Or, there might be an immediate fight against the Boss. Take some time to think about this.¡± Just as the injured Dungeoneers started thinking about this matter, Francesco added his own thoughts.


    ¡°Honestly, even if you¡¯re not too injured, you probably don¡¯t want to go up there. I mean, I didn¡¯t see it directly, but I could hear most of you were struggling a lot against those owls. And, it¡¯s not like you did much better against the vultures. Basically, I¡¯ll say this now. If you are thinking that you are going to be of any help with just regular guns, forget it. Instead, I have this deal for you. I, and the Dungeoneers who can really fight will go up there. The rest of you can stay safe on these stairs. However, everyone who stays down there has to give up on their share of the items dropped up above.¡± There was strong dissent from below. They normally wouldn¡¯t voice any complaints if he wanted to just trash talk them, but it was a different matter if money was going to be involved. Before the tensions got too high, Valentina spoke up.


    ¡°Francesco, it is not a good idea for you to be pulling this kind of stunt right now. Besides, do you really think now is a good time for every Dungeoneer here to be checking and re-checking everyone¡¯s Inventory right now to account for the changes so far?¡±


    ¡°Hey, now, I didn¡¯t mean to make it that complicated! All the C-rank Dungeon Monster Cores that have dropped¡­and the ones that will drop¡­yeah, we¡¯ll still share them equally. However, if there is a Boss up there, I want everyone that stays behind to give up their share on anything it drops.¡±


    ¡°Can you be more specific with what you mean?¡± Valentina asked.


    ¡°Hmmmm, this is what I mean. After the Dungeon is cleared, only the ones who come up with me are allowed to bid on it. Also, the bid price will only be shared among those people. How about that? You get to stay here and out of harm¡¯s way, still get to share in the Cores, and all you have to do is give up your share of the Boss drops.¡± There was a brief moment of silence. ¡°This is your life, remember. Don¡¯t waste it.¡± An ordinary, risk averse person would not hesitate to take this deal. However, was that the ordinary Dungeoneer? With the exception of the six badly injured Dungeoneers and two other Dungeoneers, everyone else was prepared to go up.


    Before they reached the top of the steps, four of the Dungeoneers took out rocket launchers from their Inventory. Another one took out a belt of grenades. West Byzantine still restricted civilian access to these types of weapons, but recently, one could apply through special processes to borrow these weapons under certain conditions, such as undergoing training and reporting daily to the government. This amount of fire power might just barely be enough against the D-rank boss, but they would have to be very optimistic to think it would be sufficient to tackle a C-rank boss. Francesco laughed at the reason for their confidence and Valentina agreed with his unspoken thoughts.


    The major weakness of the D-rank Boss, if it could be called a weakness, was that its Dexterity was clearly its lowest Stat. It had Defense on par with modern tanks, Stamina that would allow it to rampage all day, and forearm strikes that could deal more damage than a wrecking ball, but it lacked agility, relatively speaking. If the flying monsters they fought so far were any indication, at best, these kinds of weapons might have use in restricting movement, and at worst, they would be the cause of friendly fire. Valentina considered telling them to simply put those weapons away, but since they at least had the sense not to use them while fighting on the stairwell, and since they must have passed through safety training to have them, she figured she¡¯d let it be. They could at least thin out or keep back the common monsters if they appeared.


    They climbed out of the hole at the top and found themselves in the centre of a large, round, stone chamber. The whole room looked like it was illuminated by moonlight. There were no torches in this chamber, but like the D-rank Boss chamber, the main source of lighting came from above, making it seem as if the stone ceiling was both there and not there at the same time. All around the chamber were dozens of giant stone blocks with stairs carved along their sides. The blocks were each about twenty feet high and thirty feet wide. On one of the stone blocks was a massive shadow pressed against the walls. After the last of the Dungeoneers had assembled, a pair of orange flames suddenly lit up, revealing what the shadow really was.


    It was a giant owl, with orange flames for eyes. Standing from head to toe, it was at least eight feet tall. It stepped away from the wall and towards the edge of its stone block. Upon a closer look, one could see that it was probably mechanical in nature like the smaller owls. However, unlike the smaller owls, it was eerily quiet. Instead of mechanical whirring or the sound of metal clinking, there was only a soft hum and the clacking of its claws against the stone block. When it reached the edge of the stone block, it titled its head at the Dungeoneers curiously.


    Francesco was the first to make his move. He immediately started sprinting towards the giant owl. Valentina, just a second later, ordered for Diamante and Cuore to move in, too. Well before they reached the owl, it spread its wings with hardly a sound and took off into the air, flying towards the centre of the chamber. Francesco, Diamante and Cuore quickly turned to double back just as the giant owl suddenly let out a blood curdling screech. Reflexively, the Dungeoneers tried to cover their ears, but it was to no avail. The screech lasted for only a few seconds and then the giant owl went to land on another stone block. When the screech ended, the Dungeoneers realized that they had gone deaf. Valentina tried to give out new orders but nobody could hear her words.


    Francesco took a second to glance at the disorder around him, noting that some of the Dungeoneers had even dropped their weapons. In this soundless world, he made a split second decision. Instead of waiting for their hearing to recover, or taking a chance on wordless communication, he charged in again by himself. With his Strength and Dexterity, he would not need the stairs and could jump and then run up the stone block. He raced towards the owl at a world record breaking speed (for a human) and executed the jump. However, just as he reached the top of the stone block, the owl¡¯s flaming orange eyes suddenly expanded and released a brilliant flash of light. It surprised him, but with his reflexes, he barely maintained his footing and avoided falling off the block.


    Then, before Francesco¡¯s eyes, the owl¡¯s body seemed to shift into black mist. However, unlike the mist of a defeated monster, it did not dissipate, and the mist-body owl quickly glided up and to the centre of the room once more. Francesco, keeping his eyes on the monster, then saw massive clouds of black mist rush out of its body and fall onto all of the Dungeoneers below. In almost an instant, everyone below was obscured by the black mist. The owl then landed on top of one of the black clouds below, partially melding into it. Francesco jumped down from the stone block and made his way back to the owl.


    Francesco¡¯s thoughts raced as he moved. He could hardly believe what he had just witnessed. The cloud that the owl landed on had two Dungeoneers in that position. What happened to them? Nobody came out of the mist and there was no evidence that the owl had crushed either of them. Where are their bodies? Francesco reached the owl and hesitated before attacking. What if the black mist touches me?


    The black owl titled its head again, somehow disturbing his train of thought. Incensed by what he interpreted as mocking, Francesco took the risk and thrust his spear through the owl¡¯s head, which was now below his eye level, as if releasing the mist earlier had shrunk its body. Francesco¡¯s spear felt as if it did pierce through something solid, and he saw the owl shake a bit. However, the owl then immediately started gliding away, its mist-like body phasing through the spear. Undaunted, Francesco followed up with another thrust as it glided away. Again, he felt his spear pierce through something other than thin air, and the owl¡¯s body did seem to shake once more, but it continued to glide away, now in a different direction and at an incredible speed.


    Francesco was unsure if he was hurting or not, but he refused to believe it was invincible. There was a Magic Stat. The D-rank monsters didn¡¯t seem like they could use magic, but this was a C-rank Boss. Obviously, it was terrible that this C-rank Boss was capable of such powerful Magic, but if it''s just running away right now and not attacking, it must be weakened and low on mana. Francesco continued his pursuit and attacked the owl again where it stopped. Again, he could feel his spear punching through something solid and the owl seemed to reel again just before it instantly flew to another location. Francesco knew he couldn¡¯t let it recover and repeated this two more times. After this, all of the black mist seemed to shake and then dissipate. The body of the mist-like owl that he had pierced in the chest with his spear also suddenly transformed, revealing a dying Dungeon, grasping at his spear as he breathed his last.

 The Four Suits (Part 5)

    Date: May 15? 2020 - 11:10 am?


    Location: West Byzantine? (C-rank Dungeon)


    When Francesco first made his decision to go straight for the giant owl after it defeaned everyone, Valentina also had to make a quick decision. She looked around, and saw the uncertainty on the faces of not just the other Dungeoneers, but on her siblings as well. She stayed behind to try her best to call her siblings over to her using gestures. They noticed and quickly gathered around her by the time Francesco had made his way to the stone block that the giant owl was perched on. Valentina waited to see what would happen before giving out new commands. They saw a brief flash of light by the stone block and they saw Francesco struggle to maintain his footing. Then, he suddenly turned around, his back now facing the owl. Valentina was surprised by this sudden movement but continued to watch both him and the owl before making any moves. Then, after a moment of stillness, Francesco suddenly jumped down from the pillar and raced back towards the Dungeoneers. Did he suddenly lose his nerve and want to regroup?


    Valentina didn¡¯t think someone as haughty as Francesco would suddenly be running away from an enemy so frantically, but she figured that it should be a given that he would still value his life more than his pride. Valentina waved her arm out to beckon him to come over so that they could try to plan out their next move. However, he completely ignored her and instead ran up to another pair of Dungeoneers, one of them still on the ground, tears in her eyes and hands still over her ears. Does he want everyone to gather up first? To even desire the cooperation of the weaker Dungeoneers, Francesco was surprisingly desperate. Just as Valentina was contemplating on how she could go about mocking him for this afterwards, Francesco suddenly thrust his spear through a Dungeoneer¡¯s head. As his corpse fell to the ground, the Dungeoneer beside him finally noticed what was going on around her and seemed to scream out, but of course, no sound could be heard. She tried getting up to run away, but Francesco¡¯s spear ran through her before she could hardly get a step away.


    Valentina¡¯s poker face broke for just an instant. She panicked, and might have even let out a gasp that would have been quite audible in any other circumstance. However, before the horror of the situation left her frozen for any longer, she suddenly relaxed as her Mental Resistance B activated to calm her nerves. She activated her Perception Skill and carefully took in her surroundings to understand what she needed to do. She recalled what had just happened at an accelerated rate.


    First, Francesco went to attack the owl. Second, he turned away from it. Third, he ran down to the Dungeoneers. Fourth, he killed a Dungoneer. Fifth, he killed another Dungeoneer. There had to be a logical reason for this course of events. If one excludes the possibility that Francesco had always intended to kill everyone else in the Dungeon, especially since there is a lack of incentives to do so, then the only logical conclusion is that the owl monster did something to him. Valentina could continue to think about all the different possibilities on that train of thought, but, even in her accelerated state of mind, she could see Francesco already turning around with a fiery gaze in his eyes.


    Is he looking at me? At one of my siblings? Are we going to have to fight right now? However, Francesco continued to turn his head, and she could tell he was eyeing someone else. Valentina immediately turned to her siblings to start giving them instructions. She pointed to Cuore and then Diamante. Then, she used two fingers to point at the owl. Then she pointed at herself and Alessia. She then used two fingers to point at Cuore and Diamante, and then pointed at the owl. Diamante nodded but Cuore still looked distracted by Francesco. Valentina slapped her brother, and then pointed at him and then the owl once more. He nodded.


    Diamante and Cuore sprinted towards the owl just as Francesco started running towards another Dungeoneer. Valentina and Alessia followed a couple steps behind them. As they ran, she thought she could suddenly see Francesco look at her. Valentina did not know exactly what kind of Skills Francesco possessed, but if it really came down to a fight to the death, she was still sure she would win, although she expected she may have to give up an arm or even more.


    Francesco was not looking at her. His gaze had merely shifted because the Dungeoneer he was targeting was running away. Valentina capitalized on the situation and ignored him as well. Taking on the Boss was the number one priority. If they had to fight him they would, but otherwise they would use all of their combined strength to deal with the Boss instead. If they still had to fight Francesco even after that, then so be it. One step at a time.


    Diamante and Cuore were the first to get to the top of the stone block. It was strange that the owl had remained in place where it stood the whole time. When the owl seemed to finally take note of the need to flee, both Diamante and Cuore were already upon it, each attacking one of its now spread out wings. They tried to keep the owl grounded, but it was clear to see the owl was already starting to overpower them and knock them away. Alessia charged in before her sister. Just as she was in melee range, the black owl aggressively launched itself forward, perhaps attempting to tackle Alessia. The sudden attack was slowed down by her two siblings that continued to cling at the owl¡¯s wings and just before the owl rammed into her, delivered a counter punch between the owl¡¯s flaming eyes.


    Alessia could feel her entire arm tremble as her blow knocked the owl backwards. However, the owl did not fall onto its back and quickly regained its balance as its talons scraped along the floor. With another great exertion of force, the owl flapped its wings again and finally threw Diamante and Cuore off of it. Then, it prepared to take off into the air once more. It was finally Valentina¡¯s turn, though.


    She watched her siblings struggle to keep the beast down and saw that even Alessia¡¯s counter punch, which should have been greatly empowered thanks to her unique skill, failed to down it. At the very least, the Defense of this Boss was greater than the D-rank Boss. Not knowing what other trick this owl might attempt to pull if it got to the centre of the chamber once more, she went all out. Valentina imagined arrows, spears, blades, drills, and any other manner of sharp objects, as many of them as she could. Valentina¡¯s body trembled slightly as she felt the majority of her mana drain away in an instant. She could feel the air around her turn heavy as her imagination began to manifest invisibly around her. Alessia fell back to stay right in front of Valentina to protect her from a sudden attack. The monster seemed to notice something bad was about to happen, and when it took off from the stone block, it seemed to be flying backwards, away from her. Valentina got on one knee as she tried to maintain her concentration and calculate a further trajectory for her imagined weapons. More of her mana drained away as he maintained the hidden weapons in the air until she was sure of the owl¡¯s flight path. Then, she unleashed them all.


    To any spectators, and even Valentina herself, who could not actually physically see them, it looked as if the owl was suddenly impaled, slashed at, and blasted at from a countless number of attacks. The metallic feathers that covered its bodies were rapidly grinded down and sliced apart, its wings and chest had rows upon rows of holes suddenly punched into them, and an increasing number of cracks appeared on its head until its face started to break apart completely. When the innumerable attacks had finally dealt the critical amount of damage, it seemed as if the owl¡¯s entire body then suddenly exploded into a thousand pieces. And then, those pieces too looked to be in the midst of a further barrage of blows just as they transformed into the usual black mist.


    Valentina collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air, her body in mild shock from the sudden depletion of mana. Her siblings rushed over to her, first trying to help her back up, and then quickly backing away again, not sure if they should be touching her at that moment. Valentina¡¯s breathing was slowly returning to normal when one of her siblings offered her a mana potion. Valentina waved it away.


    ¡°N- no, I don¡¯t need that right now¡­¡± Valentina could suddenly hear again. Judging by her siblings¡¯ reactions, so could they. Then, from below, they heard the sound of someone firing a rocket launcher. Valentina still wasn¡¯t in the condition to turn around to look and had to rely on her siblings to react appropriately. Shortly after it fired, there was the sound of an explosion. Then, they could hear someone else speaking.


    ¡°Y- you fucking monster! You murderer! H- how dare you do this to us!¡± Valentina tried to get back up and move to the edge of the stone block to appraise the situation, but she could only crawl. Without asking, her siblings gently picked her up onto her feet.


    ¡°V- Valentina..¡± Francesco said, stuttering for the first time since she met him. ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°What happened? What happened?! You just betrayed all of us and started killing us?! Are you pretending to have amnesia?!¡±


    ¡°Tell them to stop shouting¡­and stay put¡­I¡¯m coming down¡­¡± Valentina hoarsely spoke to her siblings.


    ¡°All of you! Shut up and stay where you are! We are coming down right now!¡± Alessia shouted on her sister¡¯s behalf. Surprisingly, that worked. Now, it seemed like Valentina just needed to recover and sort out the situation. After all, they defeated the Boss so at least nothing else could go wrong. However, just as Valentina was thinking about what she needed to ask and found out from Francesco, she received an update.


    Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    C-rank Dungeon Mid-boss defeated.


    Strength increased by 10


    Defense increased by 10


    Dexterity increased by 10


    Magic increased by 10


    Skill upgraded: Ace of Spades C (Unique) to Ace of Spades B (Unique)


    Valentina maintained her poker face as her siblings brought her down the stone block and towards the remaining Dungeoneers. Other than Francesco, there were only two other Dungeoneers still alive in the chamber. One who fired the rocket launcher and was still holding onto it, and another who had just come out of hiding from behind one of the stone blocks.


    ¡°I- Is everything over now?¡± Luigi Gallo asked as he walked away from his stone block. His voice clearly showed his fear, but the manner in which he asked his question also clearly showed he was happy to be alive and was willing to just focus on that. The Giocondo siblings gathered by the rocket launcher Dungeoneer, Valentina now having recovered enough to walk on her own two feet, if still somewhat a bit shaky.


    ¡°No,¡± Valentina answered. She looked at Francesco who was standing beside the last Dungeoneer he killed, and still holding onto his bloodstained spear. ¡°Francesco, can you explain yourself?¡±


    ¡°...Yes.¡± The rocket launcher Dungeoneer looked just about ready to explode himself. Valentina motioned with her eyes for one of her siblings to keep him calm.


    ¡°Go on then.¡±


    ¡°...I thought I was attacking the Boss.¡± Valentina quickly motioned for someone to shut up the other Dungeoneer¡¯s mouth. Valentina told Francesco to elaborate and he told her everything he saw. Valentina watched him very closely as he recounted his experience and she thought it was likely that he was speaking the truth. It also made sense. Since it seemed that everyone¡¯s hearing recovered at the same time and they could hear perfectly fine now, the cause of deafness was likely due to magic. Then, after having robbed everyone of their hearing, it would make the second type of magic that caused visual hallucinations much more effective, since they could only rely on differences in taste, smell, and touch to figure out it was all an illusion. After he finished detailing the last thing he saw, Francesco then decided to say one more thing. ¡°The Boss drops¡­I¡¯m fine with taking a reduced share.¡±


    ¡°A reduced share?! You f-¡± Alessia¡¯s hand slipped from the Dungeoneer¡¯s mouth for a moment because even she was shocked by what Francesco had just said.


    ¡°Reduced by how much?¡± Luigi asked, genuinely curious.


    ¡°I¡¯m thinking¡­maybe half as much as I should get,¡± Francesco answered, his confidence returning in his voice. ¡°What do you think, Valentina, does that sound fair?¡±


    ¡°Fair?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. I got affected by some kind of magic that the Boss casted on me, but that was just unlucky for me. It could have targeted someone else. However, I think I caused too much collateral damage so I am willing to take a penalty. Oh, and by that, I mean I think the half I lose out on should probably go towards the ones I accidentally killed. That¡¯s what I mean by fair.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Luigi agreed. He was countered by angered, muffled shouts.


    ¡°We can revisit the specifics of your penalty later, Francesco. But first, I have something to tell all of you. That owl monster that I defeated was not the Boss. It was only a Mid-boss.¡±


    The muffled noises ceased, Luigi stopped strutting over, and even Francesco¡¯s face turned deathly serious. Upon looking around the chamber once more, one could see marks were dug into the stone walls at regular intervals, creating something akin to a ladder. There were dozens of these ladders, each of them having a base that starts just above each stone block. Following them up along the wall, although it was very difficult to see due to the pseudo moonlight cast down from the ceiling above, there were openings at the edges of the ceiling, which presumably led to yet another floor above.


    ¡°I¡¯d say there is another important decision that we need to make first,¡± Valentina said, looking towards the opening in the floor that would serve as the exit. The first to break the pensive silence was Luigi Gallo.


    ¡°If you are planning to go up, I¡¯ll go up, too.¡± Francesco and Valentina¡¯s siblings looked at him incredulously. ¡°I mean, I might be able to help at least the tiniest bit, right? Like, if they use some kind of illusion magic again, maybe it¡¯ll hit me, instead. That wouldn¡¯t be so bad for the rest of us.¡± At first, Francesco¡¯s expression seemed to indicate that even he thought that comment was in bad taste. However, after another few seconds of thinking on the matter, he actually nodded.


    ¡°Yeah, that would be better.¡±


    ¡°Y- you are all just crazy¡­forget this. If that thing wasn¡¯t even the Boss, I¡¯m out. I¡¯m going down to tell the rest so we can head to the Dungeon portal. Let the military handle the rest,¡± said the rocket launcher Dungeoneer. Alessia let him go and he went over to the stairs. Before fully descending out of view, he took another murderous glare at Francesco, but said nothing.


    ¡°So, the rest of you are still going, right?¡± Luigi asked.


    ¡°Does it look like we are ready to just go up there?!¡± Alessia asked angrily, clearly concerned about her sister¡¯s current condition.


    ¡°Oh, I mean¡­yeah, it doesn¡¯t have to be right now. I just wanted to make sure we were all still planning to proceed.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ll still go,¡± Francesco responded. Luigi nodded but kept looking over at the Giocondo siblings, clearly banking on their approval more. Valentina¡¯s siblings looked at her. She took a closer look at her upgraded Skill before deciding.


    Ace of Spades B (Unique)


    A Skill born simultaneously with three other Unique Skills due to strong bonds and desires.


    This version of the Spades Skill is the manifestation of the desire for overwhelming power.


    Increases Strength by 75%. (passive)


    Can consume mana to create invisible objects from the user¡¯s imagination. Created objects have their own Stats and can be moved by consuming mana. Can consume mana to add the user¡¯s Strength Stat to the created objects.


    Mana consumption is reduced when nearby holders of the Hearts, Clubs, or Diamonds Skill.


    All of the Skill descriptions remained the same, except for the Strength bonus increasing from 50% to 75%. Valentina carefully considered that this was a sizable bonus alongside the fact that her barrage of attacks against the Mid-boss was clearly overkill. She weighed this against the unknown of just how much stronger the real C-rank Boss would be. Still unsure of what to do, she then took a closer look at the items that dropped from the Mid-boss.


    C-rank Dungeon Mid-boss Core (Uncommon)


    This pyramid-shaped object once served as the ethereal container of a C-rank Dungeon Mid-boss¡¯s life force.


    Contains mana.


    Uses unknown.


    C-rank Ring of Dexterity (Rare)


    A magical ring that increases Dexterity.


    Increases Dexterity by 50 when equipped (maximum 2 rings equipped).


    The Ring was a potential gamechanger. 50 points was a significant amount. If Valentina equipped it, her Dexterity would increase by more than a third. Valentina then thought about the potential item that the Boss could drop.


    ¡°I¡¯m going.¡±


    ¡°So, how many of us are going in total?¡± Luigi Gallo asked, picking up on the fact that Valentina said ¡®I¡¯ instead of ¡®we¡¯. Each of Valentina¡¯s siblings decided to go with her.


    ¡°However, we can¡¯t go right now. My mana is depleted so I need to rest first to recover it.¡± Now that it was down to just six of them, any decision Valentina made would essentially be an automatic majority, not that either Francesco or Luigi was in the position to argue anyways.


    They decided to rest on this platform, with Valentina¡¯s other siblings taking shifts to stay on guard. The other Dungeoneers below were informed of what happened above and they came up in order to retrieve the bodies. The other Dungeoneers were in full agreement with the rocket launcher Dungeoneer in retreating to the portal and would not be resting on the mountain. Despite the fact that six of them were still in poor shape, two of them alongside the three that were in better shape still planned to take all the bodies out of the Dungeon so that they could be properly buried. While Valentina went to a corner to rest with her siblings, Francesco helped to at least bring the bodies down the stairs, which garnered mixed reactions.


    After about four hours, all of the Giocondo siblings recovered their mana. The six of them then started to climb one of the stone ladders, with Cuore taking the lead. Tensions rose as they got closer and closer to the top, and Cuore¡¯s nervous shaking almost made him slip as he finally got through the opening on the top.


    On the next floor, they found themselves in another round chamber. All across the floor were many large metal vats. Upon cautious inspection, they could see that each of the vats seemed to be filled with some kind of metallic liquid. Fearing it might be mercury, Luigi was the first to panic and run to the edge of the chamber. All of the Giocondo siblings with the exception of Cuore waited with him. After Cuore was done looking at all of them, he returned. They all seemed to be identical and he didn¡¯t think they were mercury. At the very least, Cuore didn¡¯t think he got poisoned from being around them.


    The six of them then continued climbing up the stone ladder, which continued from the opening in this floor. Again, Cuore climbed ahead of them. At the end of another fifty feet of climbing, they found themselves on top of the mountain. The mountaintop was completely devoid of anything other than a mild breeze and a solitary, round object. At the centre of the mountaintop was a boulder, about four feet high. It was orange in colour, but other than that, seemed to look like an ordinary stone boulder. They slowly approached it, half-expecting a sudden ambush. Nothing happened.


    Cuore touched the boulder. Nothing happened. No prompt or anything. The six of them stared at it, a bit puzzled. There was no way, after all of that, that there would just be an ordinary stone at the end, right?


    ¡°Do you think we can take it?¡± Luigi asked. The Giocondo siblings said nothing but Francesco did try to lift the boulder. It didn¡¯t budge. He exerted more strength, but still there was no movement. ¡°Is it too heavy?¡± Francesco tried lifting it one more time.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure. It¡¯s not that it feels too heavy so much as it just feels like it''s stuck to the ground.¡± After some more pondering, Luigi suggested something else.


    ¡°How about we try breaking it?¡± Francesco seemed to think that that wouldn¡¯t work. If he couldn¡¯t even lift it, why would he be able to break it. However, Valentina decided to give it a go. At first, she just kicked it. Nothing. She kicked it harder. Francesco laughed when she failed again. Without showing any frustration, Valentina proceeded to her next idea. She imagined a hammer and chisel. Then, she applied her Strength Stat to both of those objects. Then, with what looked to be mimed actions, she hammered at the stone. It cracked. Francesco stopped laughing. She repeated her hammering and the boulder eventually cracked wide open, and when it did, a cloud of orange dust burst out of the crack and the boulder lost its orange colour before disintegrating into sand.


    C-rank Empowering Stone has been destroyed.


    C-rank Boss will lose bonuses to all of its Stats.


    All Stats increased by 1.


    With the exception of the Stat increases, everyone else also saw the notice pop up in their minds. As the other Dungeoneers tried to appreciate just how different this Dungeon was from the D-rank Dungeons, Francesco felt the need to voice a particular comment.


    ¡°So, it was a good idea to come here first.¡±

 The Four Suits (Part 6)

    Date: May 15? 2020 - 3:30 pm?


    Location:  West Byzantine? (C-rank Dungeon)


    After scanning the mountaintop one more time and finding nothing else, the six Dungeoneers went back down the ladder. Just to see what would happen, they also destroyed one of the metal vats below. The metal broke apart much more easily than the Empowering Stone and the liquid metal spilled onto the ground. There was no notification so they decided to leave the rest alone and continued all the way out of the inside of the mountain. They circled the mountain to see if anything had changed and after finding no differences, they then went back across the bridge.


    Then, they continued up the winding path of the first mountain. As they climbed the mountain, more of the vulture-like monsters attacked them, this time two at a time. However, that was no problem at all for them to handle, with the exception of Luigi who just stayed behind them. Francesco gave him a look as if to silently ask him again whether he really wanted to continue up the mountain, but Luigi didn¡¯t seem to notice. After a little more than an hour, and several dozen more vulture attacks, the mountaintop was now in sight.


    The pathway led up to the mountaintop, which was blocked by a large wall of branches that seemed to encircle the entire mountaintop. The pile of branches were more than three feet high, and thinking about it more closely, it was a very strange sight. It was strange not because this seemed to resemble a giant nest, which seemed to fit the bird theme, but because there were no trees in this world. This, along with several other sights, contributed to the uncanny, artificial feeling of Dungeons.


    The Dungeoneers peeked over the outside of the mountaintop nest before crossing over. Inside the nest were what appeared to be giant eggs. They were all at least four feet high and they were split into two large piles on the right and left sides of the nest, creating a large gap that ran down the centre. At the end of the nest opposite the mountain path was a solitary creature that seemed to be resting on a bed of sticks and leaves. It looked to be another bird-like creature. It had large, white wings, and the rest of its body also seemed to be covered in white feathers.


    Just as Valentina considered launching an attack from outside the nest, the creature awoke. It slowly rose up, revealing a pair of long, bird-like legs coming out of its torso. Fully upright now, it stood at around six feet tall. At the ends of its now outstretched wings, one could see finger-like claws. Then, it turned around. This confirmed that its torso was fully covered in white feathers as well, but it had a couple other notable features. The most significant one was that it did not have the head of a bird. Its neck and head looked just like that of a young woman with long, white hair flowing down past its shoulders, covering parts of its chest and back. If it weren¡¯t for the solid yellow eyes, its face could pass as unmistakably human.  However, one familiar with mythology would say that this creature was most probably a harpy.


    The party froze as the two sides stared at each other. Then, Luigi Gallo suddenly climbed into the nest. Francesco then seemed to go after him. However, instead of pulling him back outside, he lined up beside Luigi. Despite the unusual situation, it was not until Valentina saw the two of them walk halfway across the nest when she could finally do something.


    [The effects of Mass Charm have been resisted due to Mental Resistance B.]


    Silently panicking, Valentina turned her attention towards her siblings, at this moment now fully prepared to abandon Luigi and Francesco, and retreat if necessary. Cuore looked back at her, as if waiting for instructions. The twins, on the other hand, were staring at the harpy and seemed to also want to enter the nest.


    ¡°Alessia, Diamante!¡± The two twins turned around to face Valentina. Their gaze seemed to be out of focus. ¡°Snap out of it!¡± The two twins looked confused about why she was yelling.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong, sister?¡± Alessia spoke slowly, as if in a trance. Valentina looked back into the nest and saw Francesco and Luigi slowly walking closer to the harpy, which was still standing at the same spot at the other end. Wait, was this an opportunity?


    ¡°Cuore, have you resisted the Charm?¡±


    ¡°Uh, ah, yes, I got a notif-¡±


    ¡°Good, make sure the twins stay put.¡± Valentina started to imagine another assembly of invisible weapons. Francesco and Luigi were now only about thirty feet away from the harpy. Valentina leaned against the nest and continued to concentrate. The two were now twenty feet away and Valentina had now assembled about as many weapons as when she defeated the Mid-boss. Would that be good enough? Would the harpy stay in place? As she thought about these questions, Valentina realized that she had to move invisible weapons further up, otherwise a straight-line barrage would go through the two Dungeoneers. This wasn¡¯t the kind of mistake she¡¯d normally make.


    Valentina repositioned her weapons and Francesco and Luigi were now only ten feet away. Valentina activated her Perception Skill to take a closer look around the harpy to account for possible escape paths if it suddenly tries to dodge. As she did, she also got a closer look at the harpy and realized something. This creature¡­really was incredibly beautiful. The snow-white feathers of its body and wings had a majestic look of its own, but cast against the sunlight, it was an even more picturesque appearance. And then, there was the shape of its body. Its legs, despite clearly being birdlike, were slender and sleek. They evoked a sense of both power and grace. Its white torso also appeared alluringly seductive. And finally, there was its face. The skin of its face looked like perfect porcelain, its deep red lips seemed to give off an unspoken invitation, and the long, silky white hair that flowed down seemed to perfectly frame its face. Without a doubt, this was the most beautiful monster Valentina had ever seen.


    ¡­But, it was still a monster. Valentina blinked a couple times and realized she had now fallen onto the nest wall. In her brief instant of distraction, almost a quarter of her created weapons had disappeared. Luigi and Franceso were now only five feet away. Valentina had to do it now while the harpy still seemed distracted. She applied her Strength Stat to the weapons and barely kept her feet on the ground as the consumption of mana also drained away the energy in her body. She stayed focused on the trajectory of the attacks and then unleashed her barrage. The invisible weapons rained from above, and just a second before contact, the harpy seemed to notice it was being attacked. However, it did not seem to know where the attack was coming from and randomly dodged to the side.


    There was the loud and continuous sound of stone being repeatedly smashed apart as dozens of invisible weapons struck at where the harpy once was. There was also the sound of screeching as the harpy felt its body being assaulted by the invisible tide of flying weapons. Spears, swords, daggers, and other weapons dug themselves into the harpy¡¯s wings, chest, legs, and head. Black blood dripped and sprayed out of the multiple holes and cuts that instantaneously appeared, staining its pure-white body. The cacophony of screeching and shattering stone lasted for only a few seconds and ended with the harpy falling to the ground. Then, Luigi and Francesco both suddenly shook their bodies and looked around in confusion. Valentina slumped to her knees and rested the rest of her body against the nest wall, breathing heavily.


    ¡°H-huh? What happened¡­? Sister?!¡± The twins also seemed to have been freed from the effects of Mass Charm. Valentina struggled to turn to face them. However, before she could tell them not to worry, there was the sound of pained cooing. Valentina looked back into the nest and saw the harpy getting back onto its feet. Black blood dripped off from almost everywhere. It dripped off from its wings, its sides, its back, the sides of its legs, and down the side of its face, covering up one eye. It cooed again, this time, one could hear the undertones of building rage.


    ¡°H- hurry up!¡± Valentina managed to yell, desperately trying to get Francesco¡¯s attention. ¡°Kill it now!¡± Francesco seemed to finally piece together the situation and he dashed towards the heavily injured harpy. He thrust his spear at its chest, but just before it connected, his entire body was blown back by a sudden, massive gust of wind. Francesco smacked into the ground about thirty feet away from the harpy. Luigi turned tail and started to run out of the nest and the twins prepared to climb inside. However, before they got in, Valentina grabbed Alessia¡¯s arm. There wasn¡¯t enough force to hold her back but it succeeded in getting her attention.


    ¡°W- what is it? Should we run?¡± Valentina grabbed at the C-rank Ring of Dexterity she got from the Mid-boss and pulled it off her finger.


    ¡°Take it¡­¡± When Valentina tried passing the ring over, she suddenly fell over and landed flat on the mountain path.


    ¡°M-maybe we should just run away?¡± Cuore suggested. Valentina said nothing, truly thinking if perhaps this was what they should be doing. Alessia took the Ring from Valentina and equipped it. Then, instead of entering the nest, she started to pick Valentina up to carry her.


    ¡°Yes, we should just run.¡± As Alessia said this, from the corner of her eye she saw Francesco being hurled off the mountaintop by another powerful gust of wind. Francesco soon fell out of sight, and immediately afterwards, there was the sound of an ominous coo. Alessia quickly lifted Valentina up and cradled her in her arms. Valentina¡¯s siblings nodded at each other and they started to run back down the mountain path.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    The harpy gave chase to the Giocondo siblings. It jumped off the side of the nest, and attempted to fly down the mountain. Its wings were still damaged, though, and it could not stay airborne for long. However, it still descended faster than they could and soon blocked the path down the mountain. The siblings considered whether it was still possible to run past it. The harpy approached them from below, slightly limping.


    Alessia gently laid Valentina onto the ground. Cuore and Diamante moved in front. The harpy paused in its advance. It stared at them, blood still dripping from its various wounds, perhaps even more so from its wings now after its flight. The siblings stared back, waiting for its next move. The siblings tensed up and prepared to react to any sudden movements. Then, after another few moments, the twins suddenly relaxed. Cuore was so focused on the harpy that he did not immediately notice. Then, Diamante suddenly started walking past him, and after that, Alessia followed. Cuore¡¯s mind suddenly cleared up when he finally realized what was happening.


    [The effects of Mass Charm have been resisted due to King of Hearts C (Unique).]


    Cuore regained control of his body and at first, he moved forward as well to pull the twins back. However, he stopped himself. The harpy was still standing where it was, still bleeding and breathing just a bit haggardly from its injuries. As best as he could, Cuore attempted to mimic the trance-like walk while at the same time slowly speeding up to try to get ahead of the twins. Perhaps due to a penalty from using Mass Charm, or from impaired vision from the blood that covered up one of its eyes, the harpy did not seem to suspect Cuore¡¯s acting.


    When Cuore was about five feet away from the harpy, he suddenly broke into a dash and attempted to tackle it. The tackle successfully caught the harpy off guard and Cuore knocked it off balance. However, just as it was about to be knocked off both feet, it suddenly slammed the lifted leg into the ground. The harpy angrily cooed at the man who had his arms wrapped around its midsection. The harpy then dug the claws on its wings into Cuore¡¯s back. They easily dug into his flesh and cracked his ribs. Cuore¡¯s body violently shook in response, but he did not let go. Instead, he pushed off his feet and attempted to force the harpy onto the ground. This pushed the harpy slightly off balance again, but it did not otherwise budge. The harpy¡¯s claws dug deeper into Cuore¡¯s back, inching closer to his organs.


    Diamante suddenly slammed into the harpy from the side, having finally recovered from the Mass Charm. The sudden impact did not knock the harpy over, but it at least prevented it from clawing into Cuore¡¯s organs. Diamante then grabbed at one of the harpy¡¯s wings in order to gain a better position in forcing the harpy down. However, the injured harpy was still too strong and pushed Diamante off of it. The harpy then noticed Alessia, who had also just recovered and was coming towards it.  Instead of waiting to receive another attack, the harpy conjured a sudden gust of wind to blow against her.


    Just as Alessia looked to be swept off her feet, she suddenly kicked off one leg and flew towards the harpy. The harpy, although surprised, still reacted in time to attempt to slash at her with one of its clawed wings. The claws and Alessia¡¯s first connected, and to an even greater surprise, the harpy felt its bones break as the punch continued to fly past its claws and into the harpy¡¯s shoulder. The harpy fell back slightly, one of its legs now off the ground.


    Not missing his opportunity, Cuore pushed again, this time succeeding to push it backwards and off of its remaining leg. Cuore moved it just two steps back when the harpy attempted to dig the talons on its legs into the ground once more. As it tried to do this, Alessia punched the harpy in the face. Unlike the blow that broke past its claws earlier, this hardly hurt at all, though. The harpy succeeded in digging its talons into the mountain path and Cuore¡¯s push was halted once more. Then, the harpy used its other clawed wing to slash at Alessia.


    Alessia suddenly countered the attack and again, the harpy could feel this blow was much more powerful. The blow caused some of the bones at the end of its wing to crack, but it at least seemed to not be as bad as the earlier counter. With both of its wing claws injured, the harpy returned to conjuring another sudden gust of wind. The gust was just about to knock Alessia off her feet when she suddenly countered with another punch to the harpy¡¯s face, and this time actually hurting it.


    Cuore was continuously trying to push the harpy, and in that instant it was dazed, Cuore succeeded in moving the harpy another couple steps. Then, Diamante returned and grabbed at one of its wings and attempted to pull it down. The harpy held its ground, though. The harpy¡¯s annoyance reached a new level and it decided to finish all three of them off at once. It prepared another gust of wind, but did not cast it immediately. Then, it prepared a second one. As the three siblings continued to beat or push the harpy, it suddenly conjured two massive gusts of wind simultaneously. Diamante was blown away and off the mountain path. Alessia was pushed back as well, nearly ending up at the edge of the mountain path. Cuore was holding tightly onto harpy the whole time and just barely avoided being blown away.


    Cuore¡¯s resistance infuriated the harpy. With great pain, it jumped off the mountain path and when Cuore still didn¡¯t let go, it glided towards the mountainside to slam him against the rocks. Still, Cuore did not let go. Then, the harpy used the talons on its legs to rip into Cuore¡¯s flesh. The talons tore off sizable chunks of meat from his legs and cut into his bones. Cuore¡¯s grip finally loosened but he still hung on. The harpy then flew back onto the mountain path, a bit further below than where it took off. Alessia caught up to it and charged at the harpy.


    The harpy used its mana to double cast Gale Force one more time. Alessia expected it this time, though. When the wind collided with her body, it lost its force almost instantaneously. Then, immediately afterwards, Alessia flew forward with extraordinary speed. This time, instead of a punch, she switched up her position as she flew forward in mid-air and delivered a flying kick. The harpy first thought about dodging, but not only was Cuore trying to hold it down, but Diamante also suddenly appeared from behind and grabbed at its legs as well. However, even injured, with its high Strength and Dexterity, that still wasn¡¯t enough to keep it completely still. It shifted its body so that the kick at least did not land squarely on its chest as intended.


    The kick connected with the side of the harpy¡¯s chest. The impact broke several ribs and Alessia¡¯s body kept flying forward, crashing hard into the harpy¡¯s chest and wing. The additional impact pushed the broken ribs deeper into the harpy¡¯s body. It suddenly coughed up blood, one of the broken ribs puncturing a lung. The harpy finally fell onto its back as its body started to convulse. It desperately struggled to breathe as it coughed up even more black blood.


    Alessia picked herself back up as she watched the harpy continue to lurch about in the midst of its death throes, Cuore still hanging onto it. The harpy continued to cough up more black blood and Alessia thought she could even see its one open eye start to cloud over as the life faded from its body. The harpy was oblivious to everything around it as its painful existence persisted. For just an instant, Alessia felt something akin to sympathy or guilt. Even if she had to kill this monster, was it necessary for it to suffer like this? However, she quickly pushed that thought away. This was the price to pay for attempting to kill her family. And also¡­even if she did want to feel sorry for it, Alessia didn¡¯t even have the Stats to deal a proper coup de grace.


    Another minute went by and the harpy finally stopped moving. Then, its body turned into the familiar black mist, which disappeared along with all the black blood that stained their clothes. Cuore got back up, his clothes shredded and his body looking exhausted. However, he looked completely fine otherwise, his bones now mended and his flesh magically regrown. Along with Diamante, who was also completely uninjured, but whose clothes were ruined from a short tumble down the mountain, they went back up the mountain path to return to their sister. As they set off, Alessia received a notification.


    C-rank Dungeon Boss defeated.


    Strength increased by 25


    Dexterity increased by 25


    Magic increased by 25


    New Skill acquired: Mental Resistance D


    New Skill acquired: Evasion D


    Skill upgraded: Unarmed Combat Training D to Unarmed Combat Training C


    Skill upgraded: Queen of Clubs C (Unique) to Queen of Clubs B (Unique)


    As they continued up the mountain path, they eventually met with Valentina. Luigi was also there, having miraculously survived by hiding behind the nest at first instance. They went back to the nest to check the area out again. When they reached the nest, they began breaking the eggs as a precaution. Their shells were as strong as steel and when they broke open, thick, yolk-like substances oozed out. It took a fair amount of time to finish breaking the eggs as there were about a hundred of them. There were also no notifications even after breaking the last of the eggs.


    The light from the sky was gradually growing dimmer. However, they did not want to camp out on the mountaintop so they headed down. At some point down the path, they encountered some fallen rocks and saw a long scrape along a wall. They were on guard for a moment, wondering if some other monsters had hidden somewhere on the mountain. However, there were no encounters with any monsters by the time they reached the bridge again.


    It was nearing nightfall soon, but still, they did not want to camp out on the mountain. As they continued down, they soon saw something lying on the mountain path. It was a cracked and chipped spear. Upon closer examination, they recognized it to be Francesco¡¯s spear. They recovered it and continued, not trying especially hard to try to find his body. Another few hundred feet down the mountain, they found him.


    Francesco¡¯s body was badly battered from the fall and it was clear that his arms and legs were broken in multiple locations. Small pools of blood formed around his arms, legs, and at the side of his head. Valentina didn¡¯t really care and told Luigi to retrieve the body if he wanted to. Luigi, perhaps finally caring a bit more about his reputation after leaving the Dungeon decided to do so. However, he let out an exclamation when he did.


    ¡°Wait! I think he¡¯s still breathing?¡±


    ¡°...Okay,¡± Valentina said, masking her genuine surprise. Perhaps he had higher Defense than she thought, or maybe he survived due to some Skill? Maybe he was just lucky in the way he fell. She went over to take a closer look. No, not really that lucky. Although she could confirm he was still breathing, it was just barely so. Even if he did survive, he¡¯d probably never be able to walk again. In any case, he was too badly injured for D-rank healing potions to do anything for him.


    There were no other incidents going down the mountain. They finally decided to rest at the base of the mountain. It may have been possible to have someone continue on and get Francesco out of the Dungeon first, but Valentina was not willing to take any more risks for her siblings, and Luigi would not have had the Stamina to keep going while carrying him by himself.


    They exited the Dungeon early the next day, where they were immediately swarmed at and congratulated by the Earth Alliance staff and various other West Byzantine officials. The Giocondo siblings did not care to go through a debriefing at the moment and left to go rest at the hotel. Francesco was hurried off to receive emergency treatment. Luigi Gallo was more than happy to take any questions on their behalf.


    After taking a shower, Valentina checked the news. Unsurprisingly, they were reporting on the C-rank Dungeon that they cleared yesterday. However, there was another update that caught her attention. It was about the appearance of more orange portals around the world yesterday. Valentina had mixed feelings about this. On one hand, there was going to be more opportunity for profit. On the other hand, Valentina felt she needed to get more information on the Dungeons before attempting another one.


    Then, as Valentina continued checking other news, there was a more surprising update. It was about other C-rank Dungeons that had already been cleared. The surprising thing was not that other Dungeons had been cleared by now, but that there were several that had been cleared even faster than the one she cleared. In fact, there was one that was cleared in under eight hours. For the first time since acquiring her Unique Skill, Valentina was envious of another Dungeoneer.


    The first appearance of the C-rank Dungeons were the sparks that ignited the first small flames of competition. Notable Dungeoneers around the world rapidly rose in fame and the countries that they were citizens of pushed the discussion onto the world stage. Eventually, the topic of which Dungeoneers were the strongest, and by that proxy, which countries were the strongest, would rise to be one of the most popular debates. The majority of doubters who still thought this would be just a temporary crisis quickly changed their minds as the age of Dungeoneers truly dawned upon the world.

 La Cucaracha Returns (Part 1)

    Date: May 16, 2020 - 12:14 pm


    Location: Small island in the Caribbean Sea


    Dungeons do not always manifest in populated city centres. Some have appeared as far as 80 km away from the nearest human settlement. In this case, an orange portal appeared about a kilometre away from the beach of a small Caribbean island with a population of less than 3000 people. No military was mobilized to deal with the situation and a pair of destroyers were on standby in order to bombard the island if the Dungeon monsters overran it. Despite the ¡°ultimatum¡± issued to the island¡¯s inhabitants, the majority of the population did not evacuate. Many waited in their homes and prayed, while others crowded around the police barricade set up around the portal. Many of the police were like-minded with the rest of the inhabitants and did not stay behind due to orders.


    Other than the island''s populace, there was one other person at the police barricade. This man was Juan Ramirez, a low-level official of the Earth Alliance. His job there was to ensure that guidelines were followed and that there was no reckless or dangerous behaviour regarding the portal or the Dungeon. However, no other staff was sent alongside him to ensure compliance. This was due to both a lack of personnel due to the sudden resurgence of portals and to the belief that it would have been a simple process. He was just there to make sure that an orderly evacuation was underway and that proper measures were being implemented regarding either clearing the Dungeon or dealing with the aftermath of an Outbreak. In his opinion, neither was happening and he was yet to receive a proper response from the complaint he filed.


    As Mr. Ramirez continued to wait for an update as the Dungeon Outbreak time neared, another outsider arrived at the police barricade. It was a young woman wearing something similar to combat fatigues, sunglasses and a red beret. She had short black hair and poking out from the edges of her clothes one could see burn scars that likely ran down her shoulders, back, and arms. She wore a fierce smile on her face as she confidently strolled up to the barricade. A few of the officers went over to stop her but she ignored them. The police did not become hostile in their attempt to block her way and merely spread their arms out and told her to please move away. After looking at her for a few seconds, Mr. Ramirez realized who she was. He quickly ran over, fearing the worst.


    ¡°Miss Madrazo?!¡± he called out to the young woman. She turned to face him.


    ¡°Who¡¯s asking?¡± she asked, still grinning.


    ¡°Miss Madrazo, I know why you are here. However, the government has not organized any attempt to clear this Dungeon. Also, you have not been authorized under special measures to attempt to clear this Dungeon on behalf of the Earth Alliance. Therefore, you must move away.¡± Mr. Ramirez did not feel the need to also spout on about the international warrants made for her arrest. Right now, he was just doing what was required of him by his job, but without putting his life at too much risk, however strange that seemed.


    ¡°What¡¯s the problem? You guys aren¡¯t doing anything about it right now, so what¡¯s the harm in me wanting to just go inside?¡± One of the officers, who didn¡¯t actually know who she was, raised his gun to shoo her away. Mr. Ramirez immediately went over to put his hand on the officer¡¯s arm.


    ¡°Miss Madrazo, I, on behalf of the Earth Alliance, ask that you please respect the Uniform Guidelines. We understand your value and appreciate the contributions you have made towards Dungeon clearing. However, it is essential that the process of Dungeon clearing remains a cooperative effort between all the member nations of the Earth Alliance. Please, cease your unilateral intervention.¡± Okay, that¡¯s it. I¡¯ve done the full spiel, he thought. If she still wants to go in, there is no way in hell I¡¯m stopping her then.


    ¡°Well, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem if I clear the Dungeon on the EA''s behalf then?¡± Just after Sierra spoke, Mr. Ramirez¡¯s phone rang. He immediately picked it, taking his first opportunity to leave this situation.


    ¡°Hello? ¡­What? ¡­Really? Okay, I understand.¡±


    ¡°So, I¡¯ll just go in now?¡± Sierra asked, mostly rhetorically. Mr. Ramirez sighed heavily. Alright, one last time.


    ¡°Miss Madrazo, I have just received an update. The Earth Alliance is currently transporting a Dungeoneer to handle the C-rank Dungeon on this island. As such, you may not, in any way, interfere with the Earth Alliance¡¯s measures in handling this Dungeon. If you do, you can expect to receive sanctions despite your previous contributions. This is your only warning.¡± The police looked at Mr. Ramirez after he said this. He tried to slightly shake his head, as if to alert them that he was just saying this because he had to, and not because he expected them to actually stop her.


    ¡°Someone is coming here? Who?¡± Sierra asked.


    ¡°Oh¡­they didn¡¯t actually give me a name.¡±


    ¡°Is it just one Dungeoneer?¡±If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°Uh¡­I think so¡­¡± Sierra looked intrigued.


    ¡°Okay, fine. I won¡¯t clear the Dungeon.¡±


    ¡°...what?¡±


    ¡°Do you know when they¡¯ll be here?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, they said about two and a half hours.¡±


    ¡°And when is the Outbreak?¡±


    ¡°The Outbreak time? 2:01 pm.¡± Wait a minute.


    ¡°I see.¡±


    ¡°Please wait right there, Miss Madrazo.¡± Mr. Ramirez then turned to the officers. ¡°The Earth Alliance is sending a Dungeoneer that will arrive in about two and a half hours. Please, do you think you can try again to get the remaining populace to at least evacuate to the far side of the island away from the portal.¡±


    ¡°We already told you we tried, but the ones that haven¡¯t already followed the evacuation insist on remaining in their own homes.¡±


    ¡°The Dungeoneer will not be here before the Outbreak occurs.¡±


    ¡°They had already made their decisions even before hearing that the Earth Alliance would send anyone. I will send some people over again to inform them of the news, but don¡¯t expect anything different. They know about the destroyers, and they still stay here.¡±


    ¡°This damn¡­¡± Mr. Ramirez caught himself before saying anything else. Commenting on the political situation and this particular island was way beyond his pay grade. ¡°Alright, thank you.¡± The officer nodded and he gave out the orders.


    ¡°Seems tense. Need some help?¡± Sierra asked. Mr. Ramirez let out another sigh.


    ¡°I am sorry, Miss Madrazo, but you are not permitted to enter this Dungeon. Please follow evacuation procedures.¡±


    ¡°Hey, now. Telling me what I can do about the Dungeon is one thing, but do you think you can tell me where to go?¡± Sierra asked with a small smile.


    ¡°Alright, just¡­just don¡¯t do anything.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not even allowed to defend myself?¡±


    ¡°Are you seriously planning to just wait here until the Outbreak occurs?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not the only one.¡± Mr. Ramirez wanted to hit himself in the head. Was there even a point to this conversation?


    ¡°Okay, whatever. Yeah, you can defend yourself after the Outbreak occurs. Just don¡¯t¡­just don¡¯t cause any trouble for anyone else here, okay?¡±


    ¡°Alright. So, I¡¯m allowed to fight the monsters then, after the Outbreak.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Mr. Ramirez replied, tiredly, ¡°as long as you do not interfere with the evacuation or the Earth Alliance¡¯s efforts in dealing with this situation.¡±


    ¡°Alright, I can wait.¡± Sierra took out a folding chair from her Inventory and sat down beside the barricade. The officers looked at Mr. Ramirez, who shook his head again, silently telling them not to bother.


    ¡°Were you expecting this to happen?¡± Mr. Ramirez asked, not really caring about the answer.


    ¡°Well, I just thought it¡¯d be nice to carry something like this around.¡±


    ¡°Right.¡± Sierra took out her smartphone and started reading something. ¡°What are you looking at?¡±


    ¡°Just checking the news. I¡¯m wondering which Dungeoneer is coming over.¡±


    ¡°Well, I could call them to confirm.¡±


    ¡°No, I want to be surprised.¡±


    ¡°Right¡­hey, how did you get on this island anyway?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d love to tell you but¡­¡±


    ¡°But what?¡±


    ¡°I think I might get some more criminal allegations added against me,¡± Sierra replied, very matter-of-factly. Mr. Ramirez stared at her blankly. Then, he just turned around. Yeah, I don¡¯t care, he thought.


    *************************************************************************************************************


    A couple minutes before the Outbreak, Sierra got out of her seat and put the folding chair back inside her Inventory. She went up to Mr. Ramirez who just got off the phone.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised you¡¯re still here,¡± she said to him.


    ¡°Yeah, me too,¡± he replied, glancing around at the vacant barricade, the police already evacuating themselves about five minutes ago. ¡°My duty as an Earth Alliance representative is to make sure you don¡¯t violate the guidelines.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised to see one of you EA guys so committed to your job. I always hear all sorts of bad things about you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just doing my duty.¡± This was not the whole truth. Juan Ramirez obviously was not a man of impeccable commitment nor one intending to meet some high standard of an honourable duty. However, he had to at least pretend like that was the case. He pretended he was like that and his passion helped him get his job at the Earth Alliance despite his lack of technical and administrative skills, which have hardly improved at all. As far as he knew, he was on thin ice and his superiors or peers were just looking for a reason to fire him. His only defense so far has been to keep the facade going and to make a favourable impression whenever possible when he interacts with any other persons or organizations working with the Earth Alliance.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯ve seen some stupidly reckless people¡­a lot of them actually, but you seem alright. At least compared to most of them.¡± Sierra started walking over to the portal.


    ¡°Miss Madrazo, it doesn¡¯t matter if there is less than two minutes until the Outbreak, you cannot enter the portal without permission.¡±


    ¡°You can call me Sierra.¡± Mr. Ramirez walked over to her, very reluctantly, as he was eyeing his car parked a little ways away that would serve as his getaway soon. ¡°Right, I didn¡¯t get your name yet.¡±


    ¡°It is Juan Ramirez, Miss Madrazo.¡± Just another minute and he could book it. Hold on, nobody else other than him and Sierra Madrazo are here. Who would report him if he just left right now?


    ¡°Hahaha, you¡¯re a funny one, Juan. You talk a lot more than Santiago as well.¡± Who¡¯s Santiago? ¡°I hope you¡¯re still alive after this. I like talking to people about Dungeons.¡±


    ¡°Uh, yeah, sounds good,¡± he replied absent-mindedly, now starting to back away.


    ¡°What kind of Dungeon do you think this one will be? I read that there is more than one type of C-rank Dungeon.¡±


    ¡°Wish I could tell you, Miss Madrazo.¡±


    ¡°I said you could call me Sierra.¡±


    ¡°Right, sorry, Sierra.¡± Mr. Ramirez was still facing Sierra, but he was looking at his watch and not her. ¡°Ten more seconds. Whatever you do, don¡¯t forget everything I said about the Uniform Guidelines.¡± Sierra laughed again.


    ¡°You know, maybe I¡¯ll finally read them.¡± The area around them shook and Mr. Ramirez sprinted to his car. Ah shit, why didn¡¯t I leave the engine running! He quickly started up the car as beads of sweat started to form on his forehead. ¡°See you later, Juan!¡± Sierra called out as she suddenly entered the orange portal.

 La Cucaracha Returns (Part 2)

    Date: May 16, 2020? - 2:01 pm


    Location: Small island in the Caribbean Sea? (C-rank Dungeon)


    Inside the C-rank Dungeon, Sierra found herself on sprawling grasslands. In the distance, she saw two mountains. Ah, so it¡¯s the bird-type Dungeon, she thought. She took several steps forward and waited. In the distance, she could already see a dark cloud in the distance coming at her. She stretched out her arms and legs a little bit as the cloud quickly approached. In the middle of this, she took off her sunglasses and beret and put them in her Inventory. They would probably fall off while fighting against these kinds of monsters.


    Finally, the cloud was close enough to distinguish what it really was. A flock of about one hundred giant vulture-like monsters. Sierra was the very first Dungeoneer to try fighting in a C-rank Dungeon after an Outbreak, so the behaviour of the monsters was simply unknown. Would they aggressively attack the first thing in sight, or would they prioritize escaping through the portal? The first of the vulture-like monsters accelerated as they suddenly dived in closer to the ground.


    Sierra smiled when the first vulture swooped right at her. She delivered a swift punch that easily dug itself into the vulture¡¯s body. Before the vulture¡¯s body turned to mist, another vulture was already upon her. She struck that one down as well. In quick succession, she killed the vultures that attacked her with hard blows, but eventually, she was completely surrounded by them, their pecking and clawing shredding apart her clothes.


    She burst out from the swarm of vultures by jumping up into the air. Then, she kicked off from a surprised vulture that was circling around the swarm. With her Strength and Dexterity Stats (which was also further boosted by her Evasion Skill) as well as the durability and size of the monsters, she could actually hop off the vultures and ascend higher into the air. The vultures quickly tried to follow after her to continue their assault. However, now they were coming at her in lines again, which made killing them easier.


    When there were no more vultures circling around the area for her to jump off of, she then grabbed at one of the vultures that flew at her. With her free hand and her legs, she could still strike back at the other vultures, usually killing them with just one or two hits.


    The vulture that she hung onto eventually tired and tried to land, so she jumped off and grabbed onto another one. As if the result of flawed artificial intelligence, these vultures did not know how to deal with the situation other than to simply continue their single-minded attacks.


    After Sierra managed to kill off more than half of the vultures, another flock of monsters came. They were the mechanical, silver owls. The massive flock joined the fray and this time it looked nearly impossible for Sierra to prevent herself from being entirely surrounded. However, these owls were also simple-minded creatures that were only concerned with attacking her. Thus, when they came at her as a densely packed attack wave, Sierra could add them to her strategy.


    Sierra let go of the vulture she was clinging onto and landed on one of the mechanical owls that was flying in from below her. She purposely landed lightly to avoid instantly destroying it. Then, she jumped off from it and started jumping from owl to owl, each time damaging the one she landed on. Depending on the density of the attacking waves that came at her, Sierra could choose whether to go higher or lower, although she generally preferred going higher since that gave more leeway in case she instantly destroyed an owl that she jumped off from.


    The absurd spectacle of an airborne fight somehow persisted without the flock of monsters gaining any clear advantage against this Dungeoneer. Constant usage of her Evasion Skill slowly consumed mana, but it was replenished just as quickly from the Magic Stat points she gained from defeating them. But then, the Mid-boss arrived. It flew towards her, and Sierra, at first, tried to keep her distance from it by strategically jumping around. However, that did not last for long and she had to brace herself for what was to come. The giant, black owl let out an ear-piercing screech that caused Sierra to lose her balance and slip off from the mechanical owl she used as footing. The deafened Dungeoneer did recover though as she grabbed hold onto one of the remaining vultures. The black owl flew in close and faced her. Then, its orange, fiery eyes flared up. At that exact moment, Sierra closed her eyes and swung off the vulture and brought her hands out to grab onto the black owl.


    Her hands made contact with something so she figured she stuck the landing despite being blind and deaf. Then, she felt whatever she was holding onto suddenly move around and Sierra desperately tried to find a better place to hold onto to avoid falling off. Whether it be her arms or legs, she wrapped herself around Mid-boss as she felt the wind rushing past her. Up, down, and sudden turns, Sierra¡¯s arms and legs frequently slipped off but she still somehow managed to stay on the giant owl.


    Then, Sierra felt her hand touch something hot. Sierra¡¯s hand recoiled for an instant from the sudden burning sensation, but she quickly slammed her hand in a random direction and finally found the key to escaping this strange re-imagining of a bull ride. There were only two fiery objects on the Mid-Boss: its two eyes. Sierra started gathering mana in order to use Power Strike. After making sure her grip was good after settling down from another sharp turn, she drove her fist through where she felt the burning sensation.


    It felt like she had just punched through molten glass. There was the sensation of fire and glass-like shards exploding out from the impact of her punch, and then her fist kept going and hit something that felt like a vault door. Her fist left an imprint in the metal, and she suddenly felt her and the owl falling to the ground. As she felt the owl starting to writhe around and recover, she charged up another Power Strike, this time with even more mana since the last hit apparently wasn¡¯t strong enough. The owl suddenly flipped around in mid-air and Sierra barely held on with one hand still gripped onto the owl¡¯s eye socket. Then, the owl suddenly accelerated upwards. Sierra grabbed onto the eye socket with her other hand as well, but made sure not to use Power Strike yet. Finally, the owl decelerated as it prepared to swoop back down. Sierra struck into the eye socket again, and this time she felt her fist punch right through. The owl¡¯s entire body rocked in shock and its momentum suddenly died.


    The sound of rushing air could finally be heard. Sierra opened her eyes and took a look. She was holding onto the owl¡¯s left eye socket, with her other arm all the way through it. Thanks to her Layered Defense Skill, that arm wasn¡¯t broken but it was probably burnt or cut up, judging by the sensations she could feel along it. As for the right, the orange glow of the one remaining eye had just flickered away and the owl¡¯s entire body started smoking. Then, it transformed into black mist and Sierra found herself looking up at her burnt and bleeding left arm. Sierra quickly glanced down and smiled with relief. There were still plenty of bird monsters that were flying around nearby, some of them already coming in to attack her.


    Sierra briefly resumed her chain of aerial attacks before the final flyer arrived. A snow-white harpy with glowing green eyes quickly flew into view and Sierra tried to keep an accurate account of its movements as she continued to kill off the mechanical owls and remaining vultures. Then, unexpectedly, when the harpy was about a hundred feet away, it let out something akin to a loud bird call. Suddenly, the flock of birds that were incessantly trying to attack and swarm Sierra scattered with the exception of the vulture that she was still hanging onto.


    The rest of the birds made a beeline for the portal as the harpy came in to attack Sierra with the talons of its legs. Sierra attempted to move over to grab onto the harpy as it came, but it suddenly braked in mid-air, causing Sierra to fall just short. Just as Sierra was about to free fall, the harpy then grabbed onto Sierra by digging its talons into her shoulders. Even with her Layered Defense, the talons easily pierced her skin.


    The harpy started to rapidly fly higher up into the air. As it did, Sierra started hitting one of the harpy¡¯s legs to make it let go of her. Just one leg, though, since she would fall straight to the ground otherwise. The first few hits didn¡¯t seem to affect it at all and Sierra was forced to use another Power Strike. She landed a weaker Power Strike as they continued to ascend, and the blow fractured the harpy¡¯s leg bone. She now had less than half of her mana remaining.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Sierra¡¯s body rocked about as there was now only one leg keeping her up in the air. The harpy also briefly stopped soaring up into the air after receiving the hit. Using the sudden shift in momentum, Sierra swung her body upwards, attempting to both free herself from the other leg and get herself into a higher position than the harpy. It barely succeeded, and Sierra¡¯s left shoulder received a pair of long gashes as the talons ripped through her flesh when she flung herself upwards.


    As her body began to shoot up past the harpy, she grabbed onto one of the harpy¡¯s wings. This stopped herself from flying further away and also interrupted the harpy¡¯s ability to reorient itself to keep flying. Then, Sierra consumed almost all of her remaining mana for a final Power Strike, leaving the bare amount to maintain her Evasion. Sierra just needed to hang on for a few more seconds and she was sure she could deal the finishing blow right to the back of the harpy¡¯s head. However, right as she was about to attack, she was suddenly blasted by a powerful gust of wind. She still could have just barely hung on if the harpy did not also make a quick turn at the same time. Sierra¡¯s fingers slipped off the harpy¡¯s wing and Sierra still attempted to connect her blow. However, it only barely grazed the harpy in the back as it turned. The harpy flew off as Sierra started falling back to the ground.


    When she hit free falling speed, Sierra finally had an appreciation of just how fall the harpy took her up. Sierra spread her arms and legs out wide in order to try to create more drag, but it made little difference. Sierra took a look at her Inventory but the closest thing she had to a parachute was the folding chair. Well, she would be sure to pack an actual parachute in there next time, she thought as she pulled out the folding chair. The ground drew ever closer and it was difficult to notice how much of a difference the folding chair was making. After falling for around a thousand feet, she finally smashed into the grassland below. The impact deactivated her Layered Defense Skill and she was instantly knocked unconscious.


    *************************************************************************************************************


    Outside the C-rank Dungeon, the first of the mechanical owls and the last few remaining vultures flew out of the portal. After exiting the Dungeon, they circled around the portal, searching for something to attack. However, nobody was in sight and the monsters just continued to gather around the portal. A few minutes later, the harpy also emerged from the portal. Seeing the other monsters just waiting around, it let out another sound similar to a bird call and all the monsters started flying towards the beach, where a destroyer could be seen about ten kilometres away from the coast.


    The beach was a kilometre away from the portal so it would take just a minute for the flock of monsters to be in clear sight of the destroyer¡¯s crew. Less than ten minutes after that, the first ever fight between a destroyer and monsters would then ensue. As the monsters neared the beach, something was rapidly approaching them just above the beach. A car was racing along the road by the beachside at top speed.


    As the car sped ahead to intercept the monsters, the water along the beach started to stir. Then, it seemed as if a wall of water suddenly rose up from the ocean. Out from this wall, numerous jets of pressurized water shot out like spears of water and knocked down the flying monsters out of the air. The flock of monsters scattered when the attack began, unsure of where to go. The harpy, with its eagle-like vision and animalistic instinct, recognized the driver of the car to be a threat and called out to the rest of the flock, ordering them to go after them.


    As the flock came at the driver and their car, the water wall dispersed. Then, the car seemed to suddenly jump up off the ground and flew towards the flock. Just before the car collided into the flock the driver opened the driver side door and jumped out. The car rammed into more than a dozen of the mechanical owls, and several of them crashed through the windshield. As the driver was about to land onto the ground, they suddenly brought out one arm and pointed it at the car. Sparks appeared and the car exploded, taking down several more owls in the explosion.


    The driver landed onto the beach below. The common monsters cared not for the loss of their compatriots and immediately continued the attack against the driver. The harpy, however, cautiously observed from behind. The driver wore a hooded rain coat over padded clothing that completely covered up their body, including gloves. The driver¡¯s head was also completely covered up by a racing helmet. As far as the harpy could see, the driver was unarmed, but when it saw the waters behind them rise up again, it knew it made the proper connection of how dangerous this individual was.


    The flying monsters dove in as quickly as they could, completely disregarding the possibility of being shot down by more water spears. Surprisingly, only a few water spears shot out, specifically taking down the last few vulture-like monsters. Then, when the first owls were about to make contact with the driver, they brought out one arm again. Faint streaks of light appeared all around the flock of owls, and suddenly, the owls started crashing into each other. Very quickly, a giant cluster of nearly a hundred and fifty mechanical owls formed into a ball and then crashed into the beach, driving up huge amounts of sand.


    The driver approached the magnetized mass of monsters and put one hand very close to them. Sparks appeared again, and then huge streaks of lightning suddenly erupted all across the giant clump. Smoke and fire appeared, and just a few seconds later, the giant collection of monsters was nothing more than a huge cloud of black mist.


    For the first time ever, the C-rank monster flew off as fast as it could, but not to attack. It desperately tried to flee by flying high up into the air and getting past the wall of water. The wall of water suddenly collapsed and flowed towards the driver¡¯s hands. More electricity appeared as the water collected into a floating sphere suspended just in front of the driver¡¯s hands. Water vapour formed rapidly and in huge amounts as the driver¡¯s figure quickly became obscured. All the while, more water flowed into the water sphere that remained about the size of a bowling ball.


    Then, there was a flash of light as a massive stream of what appeared to be steam streamed towards the harpy at a supersonic speed. The stream accurately struck the harpy from more than two thousand feet away, and an enormous amount of mist obscured the instant of impact. Before the mist cleared away, the harpy was seen falling back down to the ground.


    The badly burnt harpy was blinded in both eyes and most of its feathers were seared away, which revealed ghastly and gangly looking arms instead of wings. The deformed creature crashed into the ocean below. Waves splashed out as it broke through the water, but the waves then started to swirl around where the creature fell. After another streak of electricity ran across the water¡¯s surface, the water immediately boiled, and then there was an explosion of steam. Even larger waves formed and raged across the ocean¡¯s surface, nearly obscuring the black mist that rose up from below before turning into nothingness. As a precaution, the driver waited on the beach until they received the notification.


    C-rank Dungeon Boss defeated.


    Dexterity increased by 47


    Magic increased by 47


    The Dungeoneer then proceeded to where the portal was supposed to be. When they got to the barricade, instead of a portal, they found Sierra Madrazo, lying under a folding chair, and only just then regaining consciousness. The first thing that came to her mind when she woke up was the notification that the C-rank Dungeon Boss was defeated. The Dungeoneer went over to Sierra to check on her.


    ¡°Ah¡­who¡¯s there?¡± she asked, hearing someone approach, but not able to turn to look. The Dungeoneer said nothing. Instead, they took out a phone, dialed a number and put it down next to her face.


    ¡°...Hello?¡± Sierra recognized the voice.


    ¡°Juan¡­¡±


    ¡°Miss Madrazo? Why are you calling? Wait, did you do something to the Dungeoneer we sent over?¡± Sierra tried to laugh but ended up coughing instead.


    ¡°...I said you could call me Sierra.¡±


    ¡°...Sierra, what happened to the Dungeoneer that had this phone?¡±


    ¡°I think they¡¯re right here¡­can¡¯t see them so not too sure.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Well, I broke a lot of my bones¡­so I can¡¯t get up right now.¡± There was a pause on the other side. Sierra did not answer in a way he meant her to.


    ¡°...so there is someone with you right now? And they are the ones who gave you the phone?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Okay¡­so, about the Dungeon?¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah, it¡¯s cleared.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­quite something. So, you managed to clear it before the Dungeoneer arrived?¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­¡± Sierra tried to laugh again but failed, ¡°no¡­the Boss got away from me.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­Sierra, do you think you can get the Dungeoneer on the phone right now.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll try¡­hey, you¡­pick up the phone and talk to Juan.¡± The other Dungeoneer did nothing. ¡°Who is this guy by the way? Hasn¡¯t said a word yet.¡±


    ¡°They don¡¯t have a name. We just call them "S" for now. They cleared several D-rank Dungeons in South America and Africa and the Earth Alliance recently worked out some arrangements with them.¡±


    ¡°...that¡¯s cool, I guess¡­¡± Sierra¡¯s consciousness was starting to fade.


    ¡°Alright, so, to confirm, the C-rank Dungeon has been successfully cleared by the Dungeoneer we sent?¡±


    ¡°...yeah¡±


    ¡°Got it. We¡¯ll send some people over now, then. Hang tight.¡±


    ¡°...are you going to arrest me?¡± Juan said nothing and then hung up after a moment. Sierra, with what little energy she had left, tried to turn her head to look up at "S" and managed to see up to their waist. Sierra¡¯s eyes forcefully closed on her and her mind started to drift off again. Damn, you¡¯re strong. Let¡¯s fight some time. These were her last thoughts.

 Comet

    Date: May 19, 2020? - 3:15 pm?


    Location: Merrick? (C-rank Dungeon)


    Other than the bird-type Dungeon which contained the harpy boss, there was also a type of Dungeon that had monsters resembling monkeys and gorillas. It was also a mostly wooded area with a stream that ran through the forest. If you continue to follow the stream, the water flowing through it gradually increases in temperature and you will eventually reach a hot spring. All along the stream and also around the hot spring are monsters that resemble monkeys made of stone. Despite their appearance, they are quite nimble and are capable of climbing trees.


    The hot spring is also the location of this Dungeon¡¯s Mid-Boss. The Mid-Boss is also a monkey, but is much larger. Whereas the common monsters are about four feet tall and have bodies made of some kind of gray stone, the Mid-Boss is about seven feet tall and has a clear, crystal-like body. Similar to the black owl Mid-Boss from the harpy Dungeon, this Mid-Boss also has its own gimmicks.


    First, when Dungeoneers arrive at the hot spring, the crystal monkey is likely to cast a special type of magic on them. This magic, unless resisted, forces the Dungeoneers to mirror the crystal monkey¡¯s movements. This can make it impossible for more than one Dungeoneer to be within striking distance of the Mid-Boss at any time. Also, although the movements are mirrored, it is generally to the advantage of the Mid-Boss for three different reasons. First, if he moves towards you, causing you to also move towards it, it can attack you, and because of the difference in size and reach, its attack may connect whereas yours will not. Second, even if you could reach it, the crystal monkey boasts high Attack Stats. Third, if you did possess a higher Attack Stat, the crystal monkey could either pick up one of the many boulders scattered throughout the area and throw them at you, or pick you up and drop you into the stream, drowning you.


    This magic alone caused a C-rank Dungeon raid to fail, with the only survivor being a Dungeoneer with Magic Resistance that fled in the midst of it. However, a different Dungeon raid reported that the crystal monkey had another special trait. Even if you can avoid being trapped in its magic, after sustaining a certain amount of damage, the crystal monkey will then attempt to desperately latch onto the attacking Dungeoneer and then self-destruct. The resulting explosion¡¯s force could not be accurately measured, but it had a blast radius of at least fifteen feet and left behind a sizable crater in the ground.


    When attempts are made to clear this type of Dungeon, the major part of the strategy would be in party selection. If there are not at least three Dungeoneers with the Magic Resistance Skill as well as a base Attack Stat of at least 150, then they won¡¯t even bother to try. This was seen as the bare minimum. You would also then need at least two Dungeoneers that possessed a Skill that was capable of either knocking back large enemies or at least greatly reducing their speed. With this, it was possible to have enough attackers to resist the first magic who could then damage the crystal monkey, causing the magic to be dispelled against the rest of the party. Then, the attackers, as well as other attackers, would work together in carefully bringing the Mid-Boss down, with the support Dungeoneers using whatever crowd control Skills they possessed. The crystal monkey glows right before it is about to start its self-destruct timer, and now it was just a matter of getting at least fifteen feet away for the next ten seconds.


    This strategy was unneeded for this particular raid. An orange, glowing orb streaked through the forest, pulverizing several stone monkeys along the way. Then, it struck the crystal monkey, burying itself into its body. The orb then exploded with a brilliant flood of magical energy and the crystal monkey broke apart in hundreds of pieces before turning into black mist. Shortly afterwards, an identical orange orb flew through the forest and went into the hot spring and exploded as well, destroying the Empowering Stone located underwater.


    The other monsters in the dungeon were life-sized gorillas that looked to be carved from orange-coloured wood. They were stronger than the stone monkeys but much less agile. However, due to their size, being surrounded by these wooden gorillas was a serious risk in many parts of the forest. If you do manage to navigate your way through the forest, you may find yourself at a large clearing at one end.


    In the clearing was another life-sized gorilla, but it was not made of wood. In fact, it looked just like a western lowland gorilla with the exception of three differences. First, it wore what looked to be steel plate armour on its chest and shoulders. Second, it wore a golden crown adorned with rubies and sapphires. Third, it carried a wooden sceptre that had a crystal ball at its end. It was certainly a puzzling site for the first Dungeoneers that encountered it.


    The armour on its shoulders and chest had incredible Defense. The Defense of its armour is so high, that there had not yet been any accounts of a Dungeoneer that could break it. Its golden crown also had defensive qualities. When Dungeoneers casted magic against the Boss, the sapphire would glow and dispel the magic. If it was a very powerful magic, the sapphire might also shatter after dispelling it. Also, whenever the Boss sustained any damage, one of the rubies would glow and immediately heal the injury. The ruby would shatter after healing a certain amount of damage. The crown possessed three sapphires and rubies each.


    Finally, there was the sceptre that the Boss seemed to use in order to cast magic. The magic seemed to be earth or nature themed and would allow the Boss to move dirt, soil, stones or even the trees themselves. It could instantly move tons of earth or enchant the trees to cause them to attack with magically elongated and reinforced branches. The reinforcement magic on the trees makes this a lot more dangerous than it sounds as the trees could grab onto you and crush you with more force than a trash compactor.


    However, from previous encounters with the Boss, it was thought to be a very non-confrontational creature. It does not attack on sight, and even when initially attacked or targeted by magic, it only forms a wall of earth between the two sides. It is only after persistent attacks that the Boss would use its magic offensively. And even then, if the party then retreats from the clearing, the Boss does not chase them. It is only after it leaves the Dungeon during an Outbreak when it takes on the level of aggression that is characteristic of Dungeon monsters.


    Now, what did all of this valuable intel mean for this current raid? Nothing. An orange glowing orb flew down from the sky and went straight for the boss. When the glowing orb glot close enough, one of the sapphires on its crown glowed and then instantly shattered. The orange orb lost some of its brilliance when it was not dispelled and hit the Boss square in the chest armour, where it then exploded. The shockwave rocked the Boss back and one of the rubies on its crown glowed but did not shatter. Then a second orb came and a second sapphire attempted to dispel it but shattered after its failed attempt. The orb struck the Boss in its chest armour again and exploded the same as the first. A third orb came in, and this time the Boss attempted to bolster its defenses by erecting a giant wall of earth in the way. The orb easily penetrated the wall and the final sapphire shattered trying to dispel the orb. The third impact hit the same spot as the other two and exploded, this time causing the ruby to glow and shatter.


    The Boss then enchanted the trees to also create a wall of branches that it further reinforced and filled in with a wall of earth that it enchanted to the limits, the crystal ball on the sceptre showing cracks from the intense use of mana. There were a few seconds of silence as the Boss hid behind its enchanted fortress-like wall.


    This time, three orange orbs came at the same time. It spun around in the air on their way to the clearing, as if to showcase the fact that they could easily maneuver around the wall. However, they did not, and the three orbs came close together and struck at nearby points in the wall. There was a second of resistance before the wall caved in. The three glowing orange orbs broke through the wall and they all struck the Boss in its chest. The impact from the blow caused the second ruby to shatter. Then, the three orbs all exploded at the same time. The last ruby shattered instantly and the explosion entirely engulfed the boss in a fireworks display of orange light.


    C-rank Dungeon Boss defeated.


    Stamina increased by 50


    Magic increased by 100 (Bonus Stat points gained due to Magic Growth Specialization)


    *************************************************************************************************************


    Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    Near a busy intersection, part of the roads were blocked off as a partial barricade was formed around the C-rank Dungeon portal. A couple EA staff were present alongside the local police, and outside the barricade were a few journalists and camera crews who were waiting. They came to cover the situation live when the Dungeoneers first arrived and entered the Dungeon, but it has been almost two hours now and some were planning to leave for a bit to get a quick, late lunch nearby.


    At that moment, a teenage girl wearing a double-breasted suit dress floated out of the orange portal. Her hair was a vibrant orange and topped by a plaid hat. Above her head there were also three orange orbs revolving in two separate orbits, two orbs in the inner one and one orb in the outer orbit. She landed on the ground and the orange orbs disappeared. The reporters there finally recovered from their shock and immediately raced towards her, smacking against the barricades.


    ¡°Haley, over here, over here!¡±


    ¡°Miss Star, please, a moment if you would.¡±


    ¡°Miss Star, a comment please on the articles that say you¡¯re Merrick¡¯s strongest female Dungeoneer.¡±


    The police formed a wall around Haley Star as the reporters desperately tried to get her attention. Shortly afterwards, the rest of the Dungeoneers exited the portal but none of reporters paid them any notice. Boldly, or recklessly, one reporter hopped across the barricade and ran over to her. An officer tackled the reporter, but he still asked his question.


    ¡°Miss Star¡­could you please comment on how you cleared this Dungeon so quickly?¡± Another officer came over and they prepared to drag him away.


    ¡°Well¡­it was smaller than the other one.¡± Haley stopped to reply.


    ¡°W- which Dungeon was this one?¡± the reporter continued to ask, even as the police picked him up.


    ¡°It was the forest one. With the monkeys and gorillas.¡± Haley started walking again after answering.


    ¡°Miss Star, Merrick Daily here, do you think you could give us a quick five minute interview?¡± a different reporter asked.


    ¡°No,¡± she replied as the EA staff escorted her to a car.


    ¡°Can you give a quick comment on how well you think the EA has been handling the matter with Sierra Madrazo?!¡± a third reporter asked. Haley ignored the question, but one of the EA officials spoke up.


    ¡°The Earth Alliance takes the objectives of mutual international cooperation and mutual progress of humanity as its most important considerations. Rest assured that the matter with Miss Madrazo is being handled with that in mind.¡± The reporter was clearly unsatisfied by the non-answer. However, no other reporters were prepared to charge the barricade and the EA staff drove off with Haley in the back. Haley took out her smartphone as the passenger attempted to talk to her.


    ¡°Miss Star, do you need anything to eat or drink? You must be exhausted from rushing to clear that C-rank Dungeon.¡±


    ¡°No, not really.¡± she replied, somewhat absent-mindedly as she checked her messages.


    ¡°You must want to rest now, though. Do you think you can go through a debriefing later tonight or do you need more time?¡±


    ¡°I mean, we could do it now if you want.¡± She started texting a message to someone.


    ¡°I see. Do you want to go straight back to your hotel room right now or do you want us to take you somewhere else first?¡±


    ¡°The hotel¡¯s fine,¡± she replied as she sent her message.


    ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll arrange matters with the rest of your party and contact you when we¡¯ll do the debrief.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡± Haley stared at her phone, waiting to receive a reply.


    They reached the hotel and they dropped her off. Less than an hour later, there was a debrief in one of the hotel conference rooms. Following the usual course, they started by asking the oldest Dungeoneer for a recap on the events. After hearing what he had to say, instead of reconfirming by going down the chain of seniority, they went straight to Haley.


    ¡°Miss Star, is all of that correct?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± she replied, still staring at her phone.


    ¡°So, immediately after entering, you flew up and immediately went towards the hot spring where the crystal monkey Mid-Boss was?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°You defeated it and then you went for the Boss which you also defeated alone.¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°How did you defeat the crystal monkey by yourself?¡± the official asked, since none of the Dungeoneers actually witnessed it. They just received the notification that the Empowering Stone was destroyed and since they could leave the Dungeon, they knew she must have defeated the Boss as well.


    ¡°I shot one of my shooting stars at it and destroyed it.¡±


    ¡°...that¡¯s it?¡±


    ¡°Um, yeah.¡±


    ¡°It didn¡¯t use any of its magic against you?¡±


    ¡°Well, I was at least five hundred feet away when I attacked it.¡±


    ¡°But, you could still aim at it through the trees?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°How?¡±


    ¡°I was above the trees.¡±


    ¡°...Flying?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°And you did the same thing with the Boss?¡± Haley suddenly smiled and started texting another message. ¡°Miss Star? Could you please answer the question?¡±


    ¡°Hmmmm?¡± she said, ignoring him for the moment. One of the other Dungeoneers could be heard muttering something about kids these days under his breath, but no one chastised her openly. After she sent her message, the EA official asked his question again.


    ¡°Miss Star, could you please describe how you defeated the Boss?¡±


    ¡°The Boss? The fancy gorilla?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Miss Star.¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah, the gorilla was a lot tougher than the monkey. Those sapphires in the crown really do dispel magic.¡±


    ¡°So, it was capable of blocking your attacks?¡±


    ¡°Well, it made them a lot weaker. I had to resummon one of my shooting stars two more times before all of its sapphires broke.¡± The whole room stared at her even more intently.


    ¡°And how many more attacks did it take to defeat the Boss?¡±


    ¡°One. Well, three. I was getting a bit annoyed by it and it also put up this huge wall made from the trees and the dirt. So, I used all three shooting stars at once.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I see. So you were able to split up the stars to distract it and deliver the final blow.¡±


    ¡°No, I sent all three straight through the wall.¡± The official¡¯s straight expression cracked for a second.


    ¡°Oh, right, of course. The wall would have blocked your line of sight.¡±


    ¡°No, I could see behind the Boss.¡± The official looked like he was about to ask ¡°how?¡±, but Haley continued. ¡°So, I took it out using the three shooting stars together at once.¡±


    ¡°So, that last attack broke through its enchanted wall, hit the Boss and dealt damage quickly enough to avoid its health-restoring rubies to activate?¡±


    ¡°No, the rubies activated right away.¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, that¡¯s really incredible, Miss Star. To think that your attack would take down the Boss from full health.¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°And that¡¯s exactly how it happened?¡± the official asked, still doubtful.


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t use any other Skills to perhaps weaken it first?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Did you perhaps discover a new weak point that allowed you to deal more damage?¡±


    ¡°Um, I don¡¯t think so. Hmmm, well, maybe that¡¯s possible.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡± The EA official looked to another staff member who was taking notes. ¡°Where is the weak point? Perhaps it''s based on some environmental factors? Tell us exactly where all your attacks landed.¡±


    ¡°Well, it might have a weak point somewhere on its chest. I landed all of my attacks on the centre of its chest armour and it did take damage whenever they hit since the ruby glowed.¡±


    ¡°...Could you please repeat that?¡±


    ¡°Which part?¡±


    ¡°The part about where you said the attacks landed.¡±


    ¡°The centre of its chest armour. That¡¯s where I landed all the hits.¡± The EA official looked at the rest of the Dungeoneers who gave a variety of shoulder shrugs and head shakes.


    ¡°May I ask why you chose to only hit its armour?¡±


    ¡°I read that¡¯s where it had the most Defense so I wanted to test myself against it. But, thinking about it some more, I guess it makes sense to have armour covering up a weak point.¡±


    ¡°So, that means you broke its armour?¡±


    ¡°Honestly, I¡¯m not completely sure. I didn¡¯t see through the last explosion that well. Some pieces definitely flew off but I¡¯m not sure if I completely broke it. I¡¯ll try just finishing it off with one star at a time next time.¡±


    ¡°...Is there anything else you¡¯d like to add?¡± Haley thought for a moment as she continued to stare at her phone.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡± The official put emphasis in his speech now. ¡°Miss Star, nobody here is doubting the fact that you defeated the Dungeon Boss by yourself. We just want to make sure we have as accurate of an account as possible in order to help Dungeoneers clear this type of Dungeon in the future.¡±


    ¡°Hmmmm, well, I might have one more thing to add.¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Apparently the crystal ball on its sceptre can crack. I am not sure whether that¡¯s because it used up all of its mana or because it used too much mana at once. It also might be for some different reason. Like, maybe its durability decreases after some of the jewels on its crown break.¡± The official struggled to maintain a straight face.


    ¡°...Anything else?¡±


    ¡°No, that¡¯s it.¡± Haley smiled as she got another reply.


    ¡°Alright, thank you very much for that, Miss Star. Does anyone else have anything they¡¯d like to share? Any changes in monster behaviour or Dungeon environment?¡± The Dungeoneers shook their heads. ¡°Alright, well, let¡¯s end it here, then.¡±

 Learning about Dungeoneers (Stats)

    Video uploaded on November 19, 2023.


    ¡°Hello, Zack Liner here with the second video in my series on learning about Dungeons and Dungeoneers¡± the man opened in a casual, friendly tone. Just like the first video, this video showed a mostly blank white screen. In the corner was the webcam footage of a man with the same messy black hair and wearing a cloth mask that covered his nose and mouth.


    ¡°Now, if you haven¡¯t already seen my first video about Skills¡­it¡¯s probably fine. You can just watch this one first. Alright, now, for those of you who have seen my first video, you may recall me saying that there was no need to get deep into Stats. Well, I¡¯ve read the comments that a lot of you have left on the last video and I realize now that I may have been mistaken about that. And that is why this video will be a deeper dive into Stats.¡±


    The blank white screen suddenly showed the word ¡°Stats¡± in large, bold text.


    ¡°A few of you also commented on my poor PowerPoint making skills. You are just going to have to deal with that one.¡± The next slide showed a familiar stick figure man. Next to it were five rows of words that read: Strength, Defense, Stamina, Dexterity, and Magic. On the next slide, it was titled ¡°Strength¡± and showed the stick figure again, but this time with its arms spread out and curved, as if flexing.


    ¡°Strength. This Stat relates to a Dungeoneer¡¯s physical strength. It is also sometimes used as a modifier for certain Skills and types of magic. I will go over magic in more detail when we get to the Magic Stat.¡± The slide then showed four rows.


    10 Strength: Olympic weight-lifter


    100 Strength: Elephant


    500 Strength:  Pick up the elephant


    ¡°Now, I¡¯m using these three Stat values as examples, but if you will recall from the first video, I did say that there is variance from person to person. So, I am conservatively using these as minimum examples. If you have 10 Strength, even at the lowest growth valuation, you should be at least as strong as an ordinary human Olympic weight-lifter. At 100 Strength, your strength should at least be on par with that of a juvenile African elephant. At 500 Strength, you should possess enough strength to pick up that elephant off the ground. And remember, this is a minimum example. A Dungeoneer with that much Strength could be significantly stronger than that.¡±


    The next slide was titled ¡°Defense¡±. Underneath was the stick figure man with its arms crossed over its chest.


    ¡°Um, I thought about putting more examples for Strength, but, honestly the comparisons just start to get a bit ridiculous and much harder to isolate from Skills that further modify the Strength Stat. But, if you are curious about the greatest example of physical strength that has been publicly documented, then it would be the fight in Prussia. I don¡¯t think I need to further elaborate on that since I already made a video about that. I¡¯ve provided a link to that video if you haven¡¯t already seen it.¡±


    Next to the defending stick figure were three rows.


    10 Defense: Really bulky guy


    100 Defense: Bulletproof


    500 Defense: Blast proof (small explosives)


    ¡°Yeah, 10 Defense is kind of a weird one. I mean, with only that much Defense, you don¡¯t really want to be testing your body against something too dangerous, right? Well, as far as how well your body can take on physical blows, it is at least on par with the limits of ordinary humans. Ah, right, almost forgot. Defense refers to a Dungeoneer¡¯s physical defense. Like Strength, it can also be used as a modifier for certain Skills or types of magic. To get it out of the way now, any of the five main Stats could be used as modifiers for certain Skills or types of magic.¡±


    Zack coughed.


    ¡°And, uh, right. So, at 100 Defense, you are essentially completely bulletproof. Now, against smaller caliber guns, even 50 Defense would make you bulletproof, but at 100 Defense, even armor-piercing rounds and shots from sniper rifles are blocked. On average. There are, as you might expect, certain weak points on the human body that are more susceptible to taking damage. Mainly, I am referring to the eyes and ears, and to a lesser extent, the neck and joints. But, at 500 Defense, even your eyes would resist sniper bullets. And more generally, small explosives such as grenades or small amounts of C4, or equivalent amounts of any other similar explosive compound will not cause injuries. Even in close proximity. And if you want to go big, although it has never actually happened, the Dungeoneers with the highest Defense in the world would likely survive anything short of nuclear bombs. And, with the right combination of Skills, who¡¯s to say if even that would work.¡±


    The next slide was titled ¡°Stamina¡±. Underneath was a stick figure man holding a heart-shaped object.


    ¡°Stamina. This is the Stat that relates to a Dungeoneer¡¯s endurance and health. It is also a Stat that is very difficult to quantify. One of the reasons for this is because it likely has a secondary role like an HP bar. There is no visible HP bar on a Dungeoneer¡¯s Status screen, but the available data suggests a correlation to a hypothesized HP bar. And, if you are familiar with games, you may recall that the amount of damage a character takes is often a formula that also factors in the character¡¯s Defense Stat. Well, it¡¯s probably very similar here as well. So, because of this, I decided to use some different types of examples for the Stat milestones.


    Three rows appeared as follows:


    10 Stamina: Stronger immune system / Marathoner endurance


    100 Stamina: Resistance to non-magical poisons and diseases / Resting breathing rate halved


    500 Stamina: Immune to all non-magical poisons and diseases / Half the sleep required


    ¡°Now, this might seem a lot less impressive, but remember, these are examples that do not relate to how much damage, or injuries, a Dungeoneer can take. Also, those halved amounts are in reference to humans at the peak level of fitness. I mean, just think about it, only requiring half the amount of sleep for the rest of your life is quite significant. That halves the amount of time you are at your most vulnerable. Also, these are minimum examples. As for an example about extremely high values of Stamina¡­well, you can think back to Prussia.¡±


    The next slide was titled ¡°Dexterity¡±. Underneath the title was a stick figure in a running motion. Probably. There were also lines drawn, seemingly to indicate quick movement.


    ¡°Dexterity. This is not speed. Or at least, it does not scale with speed anywhere near where the larger values may indicate. A Dungeoneer with 500 Dexterity might only have twice the top running speed as a Dungeoneer with 10 Dexterity. The main improvement from Dexterity is quicker reflexes. Higher Dexterity values can also increase the casting speed of certain Skills and types of magic, in addition to acting as a modifier for other effects. As an example of a speed increase you might not have thought about, a higher Dexterity Stat can allow you to analyze information faster using the Perception or Insight Skill.¡±


    Two rows appeared next to the stick figure.


    10 Dexterity: Olympic gymnast


    500 Dexterity: Dodge bullets (like in The Matrix)If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    ¡°Just two rows this time. Don¡¯t really have a good example of the in-between. Also, these are not exactly minimum examples. I mean, when concentrating, a Dungeoneer could showcase high-level gymnastic dexterity, but the Dexterity Stat does not improve your state of mind. Meaning, if you are not used to moving quickly, or if you are nervous or panicking, the Dexterity Stat is much less effective. In those kinds of situations, the Dexterity just kind of helps to keep you alive due to the quicker reflexes. However, the movements of a veteran Dungeoneer with high Dexterity is quite the sight. Just think about Prussia again as an example.¡±


    The next slide was titled ¡°Magic.¡± The slide depicted a stick figure with a pointed hat and holding a rectangle (most likely a book).


    ¡°Magic. This is the big one. For a lot of Dungeoneers, the Magic Stat is by far the most important Stat. Higher Magic increases the maximum amount of mana that a Dungeoneer can use. And mana is what is needed to activate most Skills and types of magic. For this Stat, I will be going over three things: mana recovery and capacity, Skill usage, and Spellcasting.¡±


    The three subjects appeared in rows next to the stick figure. Zack moved onto the next slide which was titled ¡°Mana Recovery and Capacity¡±. Underneath the title were four identical stick figures. Underneath the leftmost stick figure, a word was suddenly revealed. It read: Normal.


    ¡°Mana capacity increases with the Magic Stat, but there is another important factor to mana recovery. This is not stated on the Status screen, but there are actually different types of mana recovery. First, there is the most common type, also known as the ¡°Normal¡± type of recovery. If you have this type of recovery, you can fully recover your mana to maximum capacity within 24 hours. Your mana recovers at a constant rate, regardless of what else you are doing at the time, barring any status buffs or debuffs that affect your ability to recover mana.¡±


    Under the second stick figure was the word ¡°Rest.¡±


    ¡°The second most common type of mana recovery is the ¡°Rest¡± type. These Dungeoneers only recover mana when they are resting. This does not mean they need to be asleep, although sleep would qualify. Resting mainly just means when they are not fighting or performing any other kind of mentally or physically demanding activity. However, even if you are not doing anything like that, if you are worried, or are in some other disturbed mental or emotional state, then it may not be considered resting. This is the type of mana recovery that varies the most even among those with the same type. A ¡°Rest¡± type Dungeoneer can recover their maximum mana capacity within 8 hours of rest.¡±


    Under the third stick figure was the word ¡°Cruiser¡±.


    ¡°The ¡°Cruiser¡± type of mana recovery is the second rarest, and is often considered to be the best. ¡°Cruiser¡± type Dungeoneers recover their mana no matter what they are doing, but at two different rates. If their current mana is at or above half of their maximum capacity, their mana recovers at three times the rate a ¡°Normal¡± type Dungeoneer recovers their mana. But, if their current mana is at less than half of the maximum capacity, their mana recovers at one third the ¡°Normal¡± type rate. This is considered the best by some because it allows a Dungeoneer to constantly use their Skills and types of magic against waves of enemies. And, even if the Dungeoneer needs to dip below half to take on a stronger enemy, such as a Dungeon Boss, they can recover again afterwards since if the Dungeon Boss is defeated, there would be no more threats. However, this wouldn¡¯t be the case if it was only a Mid-Boss that was defeated.¡±


    Under the last stick figure was the word ¡°Phoenix¡±.


    ¡°This is the rarest type of mana recovery, and sometimes also known as the worst. A ¡°Phoenix¡± type Dungeoneer can only recover their mana in one way. At a time of the Dungeoneer¡¯s choosing, they can instantly recover their mana up to the maximum amount. Also, if their mana was at an amount greater than zero, any excess mana heals them instead. If used when mana is already at or near max, a Dungeoneer could even recover themselves from the brink of death. However, this mana recovery can only occur once every 24 hours. Now, despite that cooldown period, you might be thinking that this is actually the best. Instead of gaining it over time like a ¡°Normal¡± type, or having to rest, wouldn¡¯t completely refilling your mana all at once every 24 hours and potentially also healing be the most convenient, especially in tight situations? Well, that advantage does exist, but not to the extent that you may think. You see, those rates of recovery are when a Dungeoneer is outside a Dungeon. Inside a Dungeon, the rate at which a Dungeoneer can recover mana is significantly increased. In D-rank Dungeons, they recover at least 50% faster. In C-rank Dungeons, they recover at least 100% faster, and the rates are even higher in higher rank Dungeons. However, this does not affect the cooldown period for ¡°Phoenix¡± type Dungeoneers. It is always 24 hours no matter what. Long periods of time in Dungeons and the risk of ambushes are what factors into people thinking that the ¡°Cruiser¡± type may be the best and why the ¡°Phoenix¡± type is the worst.¡±


    Zack moved onto the next slide, which was titled ¡°Skill Usage¡±. This slide had three blank boxes.


    ¡°Now, moving onto Skill usage. So, I broke this up into three categories of Skills.¡±


    Inside the first box, the word ¡°Passive¡± was revealed.


    ¡°First are passive Skills. As you may have already guessed, these Skills do not consume mana at all in order to have their effects. Here are some examples of passive Skills.¡±


    Under the box, a list was revealed, which read as follows.


    Mental Resistance


    Fire Resistance


    Magic Resistance


    Layered Defense


    ¡°Yeah, the passive Skills tend to be defensive. As for active Skills,¡± the second box was revealed, along with four more rows, ¡°they can be either utility or offensive.¡±


    Evasion


    Power Strike


    Tracking


    Reinforcement


    ¡°And then, there are hybrid Skills. These Skills have multiple effects, which could either be passive or active.¡±


    The third box was revealed with the word ¡°Hybrid¡± inside, and there were four more rows underneath.


    Insight


    Spear Arts


    Alchemy


    Apprentice¡¯s Spellbook


    ¡°Spellbook Skills are kind of special, and maybe they don¡¯t quite belong under this category. I will go into this further now.¡±


    Zack moved onto the next slide, titled ¡°Spellcasting¡±.


    ¡°So, Skills related to spellcasting used to be very rare, barely any Dungeoneers had it initially. However, after the first C-rank Dungeon appearances, they became much more common. Currently, about ten percent of Dungeoneers have Skills that allow them to cast spells. On somewhat of a tangent, Magic Resistance Skills also used to be very rare, but also became much more common after the C-rank Dungeon appearances.¡±


    The slide then listed four rows.


    Apprentice¡¯s Spellbook


    Mage¡¯s Spellbook


    Master¡¯s Spellbook


    Archmage¡¯s Spellbook


    ¡°Just like Unarmed Combat and the various weapon training Skills, these Skills can rank up to the one below it. The way these Spellbook Skills work is that you give you the ability to cast certain Spells. More powerful Spells are learned whenever the Skill reaches the next rarity. Also, each Spellbook Skill has a specialization for a type of magic. For example, fire, water, wind, and earth. The method of raising the Spellbook Skill and optimizing it can get pretty complicated so I¡¯m not going to go that far. Just know that, generally speaking, Dungeoneers can only cast Spells with a Spellbook Skill, and that this is the most common type of magic. There are some other types of magic such as healing magic, summoning magic, and rune magic, but they are a lot rarer and there isn¡¯t as much verified information on them, so I won¡¯t go into detail about any of them.¡±


    On the next slide was the title ¡°Increasing Stats.¡±


    ¡°Okay, this is the last thing I¡¯m going to go into. It¡¯s nice to know all about how the Stats work, but how do you increase your Stats? There are only two known ways: physical/mental training and defeating monsters/destroying Empowering Stones.¡±


    There were two depictions shown under the title. One was a stick figure that appeared to be lifting weights, and the other appeared to be a stick figure punching a crudely drawn bear.


    ¡°It is possible to gain Stats without ever fighting monsters or entering Dungeons, but the growth is slow and there appears to be a limit to how many Stat points you can gain in this method. It does not appear to be possible to raise your Stats past 100 through this method. The other, most obvious method is fighting monsters. You also can gain a point in all Stats by destroying Empowering Stones, but that¡¯s¡­well, don¡¯t bank on that being a major source.¡±


    The next slide was titled ¡°Dungeon Raiding¡±. On it were four stick figures surrounding a bear-like drawing.


    ¡°So, defeat the monster and get Stat points. Simple, right? Sort of. As it turns out, the amount of Stat points you can gain from defeating points is random! This is the case whether it is a common monster, a Mid-Boss, or a Dungeon Boss, although you are guaranteed at least a minimum amount of Stat bonuses from Mid-Bosses and Dungeon Bosses. Also, what if you defeated the monster, but another Dungeoneer did most of the damage? Well, the Stat points you can gain are split up, roughly based on damage dealt. Why do I say roughly? Well, regardless of how much damage you deal, if you dealt the finishing blow, you  get at least half. Also, no matter how little damage you dealt, as long as you did something, you get at least 5 percent. Also, the split Stat gains are also random! You might have a reduced chance in gaining any particular Stat points, but let¡¯s say you do roll an increase in Dexterity, another Dungeoneer might roll an increase in Stamina instead. To further change the split, damage dealt by non-Dungeoneers does not count! Meaning, if a monster is killed by explosives or by falling down a cliff, if a Dungeoneer dealt just the tiniest amount of damage, as long as they were the only Dungeoneer that injured it, they would receive the full distribution.¡±


    Numbers now appeared over the four stick figures: 50, 90, 5, 5.


    ¡°Here is an example of how weird the distribution can get. One person scratches it. They get 5%. A second person does slightly more damage, but it¡¯s still a small amount. Still 5%. Then, there is someone who deals the finishing blow to a dying monster. They get 50%. Finally, there is the Dungeoneer who did all the heavy lifting and nearly defeated it all by themself. They can get 90% which truly represents the distribution of damage. So, out of the base chances, these modifiers are applied to each one, respectively. And yes, I know this adds up to more than 100. That¡¯s the point. This is also the basis in what is known as ¡®power-leveling¡¯ or ¡®carrying¡¯ where a much stronger Dungeoneer will heavily injure a monster, and then let a weaker Dungeoneer deal the finishing blow.¡±


    The final slide was titled ¡°The End¡±.


    ¡°Honestly, even I¡¯m a bit surprised about how much I ended up preparing for this and there¡¯s actually even more that could be said about Stats, but I really need to cut it here. The video is long enough as is and this series was supposed to be for my more casual viewers anyway. Well, I hope you liked it and if there is another topic you¡¯d like for me to go deeper into, please let me know by commenting below. Thanks for watching and I¡¯ll see you all next time! Zack Liner, signing off.¡±

 Earth Alliance News (Article 2)

    Article Publication Date: March 7, 2021


    Next week marks the anniversary of the first Dungeon Outbreaks. This makes this as good a time as any to go over the year thus far. It has also been almost 10 months since the first C-rank Dungeon manifestations. Oh, what a time that was. Just like with the first D-rank Dungeon manifestations, C-rank Dungeons also manifested all around the world every three days for a month, although thankfully, at only a quarter of the rate that the D-rank Dungeons did. Yet, despite the increased preparedness, due to the massive spike in the danger level of these Dungeons, there were over 2500 deaths and many more casualties.


    Now, think back on when the month ended and remember the tension in the world when both D-rank and C-rank Dungeons continued to appear a few days after the month of mass C-rank Dungeon appearances. Thankfully, though, the continued appearances of Dungeons were at much lower levels, and to quote a certain Earth Alliance official, they were at ¡°very manageable¡± rates. For the last 9 months, an average of 8 Dungeons appeared throughout the world everyday, the majority of them D-rank Dungeons.


    Of course, it has not only been bad news during this year of Dungeon manifestations. First, those various Monster Cores dropped in the Dungeon finally have a truly valuable use. Thanks to research conducted by various Dungeoneer scientists, the world finally has a method of extracting the mana contained in these Cores. Even a common D-rank Monster Core contains the equivalent energy output of around 40 tons of crude oil. The processing is, of course, much different than oil, but due to their small size and weight, they can be used as a highly efficient source of energy. They do not take up much space, and unlike oil, they do not appear to have any harmful byproducts after consumption. Right now, many different products such as vehicles, construction equipment, large household appliances and other large machines have been developed, but there have also been recent breakthroughs that may allow much smaller pieces of technology to also use Dungeon Cores. Although, this is still only planned for high end products since a single D-rank Monster Core currently sells for around $4000.


    The second thing to note are the massive improvements to Dungeon management and raiding. After the C-rank Dungeons started appearing, a new class of Dungeoneers started to emerge, often referred to as Scout-class Dungeoneers. These Dungeoneers have a variant of the Summoning Magic Skills that allows them to summon objects or familiars that can move independently. The reason why this is so important is that the familiars or objects summoned by the Scout can pass through the Dungeon portals without the Scout also needing to pass through. Therefore, it is now possible to know what type of Dungeon it is even before attempting to raid it, which was the major cause of losses in the C-rank Dungeons which are not uniform like D-rank Dungeons.


    Dungeon management has also been improved due to increased cooperation and abidance with the Uniform Guidelines. This also came with the creation of a ranking system for Dungeoneers, separating them into D-rank, C-rank, and for a limited few, B-rank. Now, no D-rank Dungeon raid attempts are permitted unless there is at least one C-rank Dungeoneer participating. C-rank Dungeon raid attempts are not permitted unless there are at least 15 C-rank Dungeoneers or one B-rank Dungeoneer participating. An introduction to the ranking system can be found at the end of this article. Thanks to all of these improvements, as well as the increased number of Dungeoneers possessing Mental Resistance and Magic Resistance Skills, there have been no deaths in pre-scouted C-rank Dungeons for the past eight months.


    To top off this year in review, let us now briefly go over some of the more newsworthy highlights. First, let¡¯s talk about the Sierra Madrazo saga. Honestly, we could go into a very detailed discussion about the life story of this daughter of the former head of one of Colombo¡¯s largest criminal organizations, but let¡¯s focus on only what happened after she awakened as a Dungeoneer. She is credited as one of the first Dungeoneers to defeat a D-rank Dungeon Boss and she gained more infamy as the only Dungeoneer to get into conflicts with the police of other countries in order to illegally enter their Dungeons. It may be one thing for her to do so with D-rank Dungeons since she proved herself capable of taking on the Boss, but she even attempted to take on a C-rank Boss as well. This reportedly ended in failure, and it was another Dungeoneer going only by the alias ¡°S¡± who defeated the C-rank harpy Boss. Afterwards, she was detained by the Earth Alliance. Other countries immediately demanded that she be handed over in order to face prosecution in their courts, but the Earth Alliance did not do so, on the basis that she required emergency medical treatment first. A funny thing to argue since one country seemed to insist that she face capital punishment.


    However, things took an interesting turn when that same country faced a crisis. A C-rank Dungeon manifested inside their President¡¯s residence. Discussions shifted to a different direction and now it was about the service that Sierra Madrazo could provide in exchange for dropping the charges made against her. With only four days on a C-rank Dungeon before an Outbreak, negotiations proceeded at a rapid pace and the first deal of its kind was made. Well, the first of its kind with a Dungeoneer, since similar deals with alleged criminals have of course been made before. Since then, she has cleared more C-rank Dungeons and all international arrest warrants on her have been withdrawn, although the countries state that she is still on a ¡°probation period¡± and that they will not hesitate to pursue her again if she commits more crimes.


    Now, onto some news that made headlines in the Entertainment section of many publications. This is the story about Haley Star, who, at only eighteen years old, became the world¡¯s youngest B-rank Dungeoneer. Haley Star is one of three B-rank Dungeoneers in Merrick, and her name is often brought up when discussing who the strongest female Dungeoneer in the world is. Also, something that makes her even more interesting is that outside of being a Dungeoneer, she is also an incredibly popular indie singer. With the songs that she composed along with a friend of hers, she gained a massive online following. She currently has over two million subscribers on her YouTube channel and her first original song has over one hundred and fifty million views, all of which happened in a span of nine months. She will be holding her first live concert next month, albeit a small one with only 500 live audience tickets for sale. They are all already sold out, but you can buy virtual tickets for the online stream.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    The final story to end this recap is about the mysterious Dungeoneer ¡°S¡± that was mentioned earlier. ¡°S¡±, along with fourteen other Dungeoneers have been organized under the Earth Alliance¡¯s newly created Emergency Dungeon Task Force (EDTF). The members of the EDTF are charged with the duty of clearing C-rank Dungeons around the world when there is not enough manpower available locally. ¡°S¡± serves the most crucial role in this task force as the only B-rank Dungeoneer, and therefore having to clear many C-rank Dungeons on their own, whereas the other C-rank members are intended to bolster the numbers to meet minimum requirements. The EDTF is also sometimes tasked with participating in Outbreak defense, and again, it is clear that ¡°S¡± serves the largest role and is often sent alone.


    There have undoubtedly been many attempts to uncover the nameless Dungeoneer¡¯s true identity but it remains entirely confidential to this day, likely only known to a very limited number of Earth Alliance staff or executives. What is not so secret, though, is this Dungeoneer¡¯s overwhelming power. ¡°S¡± is usually not brought up when discussing the strongest female Dungeoneer since their gender is unknown, but they are often brought up when talking about the strongest in the world. In a recent poll, asking people to rank all the registered B-rank Dungeoneers, ¡°S¡± was ranked no. 1 by 29% of people. This makes ¡°S¡± a close second to James Maverick who was ranked no. 1 by 33% of people.


    This year has been a tumultuous one so far, to say the least. What started as two different months of utter chaos has now almost seemed to settle down to a casual, daily routine. A new technology and energy market is emerging now due to Dungeons and people nowadays talk about Dungeoneers like they do with professional athletes. There are even websites that operate fantasy teams in which you pick out certain Dungeoneers from different ranks and then compare their ¡°season records¡± based on things such as average or best clear times, participation against Mid-Bosses and Bosses, and number of other participating Dungeoneers of a lower or higher rank. There are even sites that take bets on these kinds of statistics or on when a Dungeoneer will rank up. However, despite the new normal we find ourselves in, I want to remind us all that although it may not be soon, a third wave is likely to come. Perhaps, in a way, we have already jinxed it when we created the B-rank for Dungeoneers. Of course, if this was simply flawed labeling from the start and more difficult Dungeons never appear, that would be for the best. But, if they do appear, I hope that all of humanity continues to work cooperatively to combat the new crisis.


    Zack Liner


    *****


    Introduction to the Dungeoneer Ranking System


    Although newly awakened Dungeoneers are not required to register, they must do so if they wish to participate in either Dungeon raids or Outbreak defense. Dungeoneers may obtain a rank after registering. If you do not wish to obtain a rank, you will be registered as an unranked Dungeoneer. Unranked Dungeoneers are still considered Dungeoneers under law, wherever relevant, and they are still allowed to participate in D-rank Dungeon raids or D-rank Dungeon Outbreak defense. However, there are some conditions on the scope of their activities. If you do wish to obtain a rank, see below for more information on how to receive a particular rank.


    D-rank: You must meet two criteria in order to register as a D-rank Dungeoneer.


    <ol>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Write the D-rank Dungeon Safety Test and score of at least 80%. These tests are conducted twice a month, and there is no limit to the number of times you can take this test. Go to the Earth Alliance website to look up your nearest testing location.</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Pass the D-rank Physical Test. A series of short tests will be conducted to ensure that your physical Stats are all at least 10. This test can be substituted with a written declaration confirming your Stats are all above 10 from an Earth Alliance staff member with the Appraisal Skill.</li>


    </ol>


    C-rank: You must meet three criteria in order to register as a C-rank Dungeoneer.


    <ol>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Write the C-rank Dungeon Safety Test and score of at least 80%. These tests are conducted twice a month, and there is no limit to the number of times you can take this test. Go to the Earth Alliance website to look up your nearest testing location.</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Pass the C-rank Physical Test. A series of short tests will be conducted to ensure that your physical Stats are all at least 100. This test can be substituted with a written declaration confirming your Stats are all above 100 from an Earth Alliance staff member with the Appraisal Skill.</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Participate in at least two D-rank Dungeon clears OR at least one C-rank Dungeon clear OR defeat at least one D-rank Dungeon Boss OR at least one C-rank Dungeon Mid-Boss OR at least one C-rank Dungeon Boss</li>


    </ol>


    B-rank: Currently, this rank can only be obtained if the Earth Alliance specially grants it. If you are a C-rank Dungeoneer and your Stats are too high to be appraised, you may apply for a special review by the Earth Alliance Special Committee on Dungeoneer Ranks. Details on how to apply can be found on the Earth Alliance website. If you are refused the granting of B-rank after a special review, you must wait at least 60 days before applying for another special review.


    Please visit the Earth Alliance Dungeoneer FAQs page for more information about Dungeons and Dungeoneers.

 Coastal Defense (Part 1)

    Date: March 20, 2021 - 5:17 pm


    Location: Atlantic Ocean


    Merrick possesses the largest navy in the entire world, with a fleet of nearly 300 ships, which includes 70 destroyers, 22 cruisers, and 50 attack submarines. They also have sophisticated detection and communication systems that would allow them to organize a fleet of at least 10 ships ready to defend at any point within 20 km of their coastline in less than two hours. Normally. However, the surveillance network was unable to detect a yellow portal that appeared just 100 km away from their eastern coastline and 100 metres below the ocean¡¯s surface. While the strongest Dungeoneers are busy dealing with the sudden manifestation of B-rank Dungeons that started eight days ago, this one Dungeon that remained under the radar had passed its Outbreak time.


    The first sign of trouble was detected by the crew of the Merrick destroyer Vernon. A large number of quickly moving objects were suddenly detected, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. The crew investigated and soon found themselves under attack. Vernon was a relatively advanced destroyer and was well-equipped to deal with a traditional naval battle. However, what it had to fight against were hundreds of monsters that resembled giant, red-eyed piranhas, at least nine feet long from head to tail. They were much too fast to hit with the ship¡¯s cannon¡¯s and the machine guns on the ship were too weak to kill any of them. The piranha-like monsters easily reached the ship and started chomping away at its reinforced hull. Fortunately, despite the hundreds of attackers, the hull was holding up fine.


    Vernon¡¯s crew had already communicated the situation and one destroyer and a cruiser were set to arrive within the hour. More destroyers and cruisers would arrive within two hours. For now, Vernon¡¯s task was to buy time. However, soon after the piranhas, more monsters appeared. The crew communicated the update on the new incoming targets. Giant squid now appeared. Their sizes were in line with real life giant squid, but they had a couple distinguishing features. First, they had glowing red eyes, and second, their head and tentacles were covered in yellow scales.


    The giant squid were slower than the piranhas, and a few cannon shots did manage to land, which successfully killed them. However, that was but a drop in the bucket compared to the hundreds that remained. Also, unlike the piranhas, the giant squid could board the ship. Just like with the piranhas, the machine guns prove to be ineffective, leaving the crew helpless to try and fight off these monsters. They quickly swarmed the deck and tore through the hatches, but due to their large size, were unable to enter the inside of the ship. Vernon¡¯s crew was able to send in the final update about giant squid monsters before their communications went down due to monsters wrecking havoc up top. The crew then could only wait for help to arrive, however, Vernon finally sank with its entire crew on board less than ten minutes later.


    By the time the other destroyer and cruiser arrived to provide aid, there was no trace of Vernon or the monsters in sight. They communicated the situation. About half an hour later, a different destroyer, only 30 km off the coast of Merrick sent out a distress call. The contents of the message caused an emergency broadcast to be sent to evacuate several of Merrick¡¯s eastern ports. It would likely be too late to stop the monsters from reaching the coast now, and it seemed there was nothing else left to do than to hope not too much damage occurs before the air force or the military can arrive.


    *************************************************************************************************************


    Emergency evacuation orders were sent to all coastal towns and cities within 150 km of the monsters¡¯ last location. Every television channel was also replaced with an emergency broadcast that ran continuously as the military assembled a sizable force. Emergency defense requests were also sent to all of Merrick¡¯s C-rank Dungeoneers as well directly to the Earth Alliance. Perhaps not wanting to overly rely on patriotism, a very large sum of money was offered to all C-rank Dungeoneers that came to defend against the Outbreak. However, of the few C-rank Dungeoneers that remained who had not already entered the B-rank Dungeons with the B-rank Dungeoneers, only one of them was close enough and willing to answer the call. It was a man named Virgil Quinn.


    The monsters reached one of Merrick¡¯s major ports less than an hour later and immediately caused tremendous damage, destroying cranes, cargo, and any remaining ships that could not be evacuated. Then, the giant squid monsters went onto land and started making their way closer to the city centre. Thanks to their slow land speed, the air force arrived before the giant squids covered much ground. A dozen fighter jets bombed the giant squids, decimating over sixty of them, but hundreds more remained. Nothing short of more explosives would prove to be effective so these jets had no more of a role to play. Soon after, the navy arrived with a dozen destroyers and several cruisers. They surrounded the port and bombarded the giant piranhas. With the massive increase in cannons firing, it was much more difficult for the piranhas to dodge, and it was almost like shooting fish in a barrel. For a couple minutes that is.


    Then, the true causes of the sunken ships revealed themselves. One of the destroyers suddenly violently rocked as a giant shark suddenly broke through the water¡¯s surface and chomped onto the side of the ship. It was reminiscent in appearance to the prehistoric megalodon, but even greater in size. A second one appeared soon after, going after a cruiser. The navy was confused. There was no report about these monsters from the previous ships and their radars didn¡¯t detect such massive creatures earlier.


    During the confusion, the remaining piranhas had also crossed the distance to the ships and it was now too difficult to continue firing their cannons at them without risking friendly fire. The giant shark monsters bit through the ships¡¯ hulls and they soon started taking on water. The sinking destroyer¡¯s captain sent word to the remaining ships to open fire against the shark without regard for the ship. The cruiser¡¯s captain soon said the same. After a moment of hesitation, they followed the captains¡¯ resolution and fired their cannons at the megalodons.


    The shots pierced their skins and caused them to bleed. Then, the megalodons let go and went back underwater. The crews of the two ships were safe for now, having evaded taking collateral damage. But the destroyer, at least, was still destined to sink, albeit much more slowly. And another would soon join it as one of the megalodons quickly resurfaced and attacked another ship, its wounds apparently only being superficial. The other ships quickly reoriented themselves to take clean shots at this megalodon, ignoring the piranhas for the moment. As the first of the ships were getting ready to shoot, the second megalodon reappeared and also attacked another ship, biting into its top deck and hull.


    Back on land, the only defending C-rank Dungeoneer finally arrived. He met with the police who set up a perimeter about 15 km away from the port. They appraised him of the current situation and that he could wait until the military arrives or until any monsters are about to breach the perimeter. Virgil saw no need to unduly put himself in harm¡¯s way but as he was about to decide to stay, he got the sensation that he had to go. Reluctantly, he got back in his car and drove to the port.


    He arrived at the port ten minutes later, and by this time, it looked as if every giant squid had gotten out of the water and the entire area was laid to waste. In the distance, he could see a couple ships sinking in the distance while another pair of ships were being attacked by cannonfire. He wanted to just ignore whatever was going on in the sea, but his sensation kicked in again. He sighed and took his C-rank Bow out of his Inventory. He took up a position as if he were knocking an invisible arrow. Then, using his mana, he materialized an arrow using his Archery Arts Skill. Then, using another aspect of his Archery Arts Skill, he applied Armour Pierce to the arrow. The nearest giant squid slowly made its way over to him, dragging itself along the ground with its hooked tentacles. Virgil took aim at one of the megalodons in the distance. He held his breath, making sure his aim would be as steady as possible. When he was finally ready to fire, the giant squid lunged at him.


    Virgil¡¯s enchanted arrow pierced through the giant squid¡¯s head and continued flying 3 km towards one of the megalodons. The arrow hit the giant shark and plunged itself deep into the monster¡¯s body, causing it to let go of the ship. The shark received a few more cannon shots before going back underwater.


    ¡°Tch!¡± Virgil was aiming for the shark¡¯s heart, but his aim and power were both off. More of the giant squids took notice of him and started crawling over. Virgil was ready to turn tail and run, but his sensation kicked in again. He let out an angry sigh and knocked another arrow, which he created using mana again. Again, he applied Armour Pierce on the arrow and then he shot at the other megalodon, this time much faster than the first time. This time as well, the arrow pierced deep into the giant shark¡¯s body, causing it to let go of the ship and go back underwater. Virgil was just about fed up by now. He turned to go back into his car and leave when more fighter jets suddenly appeared, these ones coming in from a different Merrick air base. They bombarded the giant squids, and for a moment, most of them were distracted.


    The nearby monsters still attacked Virgil. However, he was able to easily dodge their tentacles, and using his bow, was surprisingly able to slice through them. There were a lot of them, though, and some even attacked his car instead, removing his main escape method. Virgil groaned as he was forced to engage in melee combat with the monsters. He defeated them with an overwhelming difference in power, but he could not shake off the feeling that something bad was going to happen.


    B-rank Dungeon Mid-boss defeated.


    Strength increased by 20 (Bonus Stats gained due to Strength Growth Specialization)


    Defense increased by 20 (Bonus Stats gained due to Rank difference)


    Dexterity increased by 20 (Bonus Stats gained due to Rank difference)


    Virgil received the sudden update as he continued to fight the giant squid monsters alone. Out of his sight, several attack submarines finally arrived on the scene and took down one of the megalodons using torpedoes. Shortly afterwards, more ships arrived as reinforcements. Virgil continued to defend himself, but his sense of foreboding didn¡¯t go away.


    Several more minutes went by as the navy continued the sea battle and Virgil continued his land battle. The final megalodon sank two more ships before finally being brought down. This time, Virgil also received a rank up in one of his Skills, his Archery Arts A ranking up to Archery Mastery D. The navy reported the sinking of the second megalodon as Virgil just kept thinking that he wished he wasn¡¯t there anymore.


    The B-rank Dungeons that appeared on the first day of manifestations had already been cleared. All the B-rank Dungeoneers however had little time to rest as they had to move on to the next wave of B-rank Dungeons that appeared three days later. And then more appeared again three days after that. Resources and manpower were stretched to the limits dealing with these incredibly dangerous portals, and there was no choice but to prepare military forces for impending Outbreaks. From the Dungeons cleared so far, a lot of information was gathered. The most basic fundamentals of these B-rank Dungeons was that, so far, there has been no two identical Dungeons. Second, it seems that B-rank Dungeons had two Mid-Bosses instead of one. Third, there were also two Empowering Stones. Fourth, the safe zone around the entrance was gone.


    Virgil knew all this about, and it was also the reason why he purposefully chose not to participate in any B-rank Dungeon raids. He only came here because of the huge amount of money offered and the fact that he thought he could just let Merrick¡¯s military do all the heavy lifting for him. If it wasn¡¯t for his Skill warning him that things could end up getting much worse if he stayed on the sidelines, he wouldn¡¯t even be at the port right now.


    Suddenly, the giant squids stopped advancing towards Virgil. They started making a hasty retreat back into the water and although he couldn¡¯t see it, the giant piranhas also stopped biting at the ships. For a moment there was a calm. During this calm, a few people had a good guess about what was going to happen.


    Earlier, when the first two ships went to Vernon¡¯s last known location, the two ships separated in order to look for survivors from the crew. The seas suddenly became incredibly violent. Then, without the other ship even seeing what happened, one ship suddenly disappeared. By the time the other ship¡¯s crew noticed and was about to report the disappearance, that ship too was dragged down beneath the waves. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    The calm coastal waters started to churn as the seas turned violent. Then, a fog rolled in. The ships sent word back to base about these updates, but their communications were never received. Virgil looked towards the frothing and misty waters. The fog was not particularly high or thick, but he could detect it was made using mana. Then, all of a sudden, his Skill that was forcing him to stay was suddenly screaming at him to get far away. A pair of massive tentacles broke through the water''s surface and slammed down across the top of a destroyer. The top deck was instantly smashed apart and the ship was quickly dragged down to the depths below. Soon afterwards, the same thing happened to another ship, and the process repeated. Virgil was already running away from the port as fast he could before the first ship was dragged down.


    Fifteen minutes later, Virgil got back to the perimeter. When he did, the military had finally arrived, or at least the advance forces. Upon seeing the Dungeoneer sprinting out of the direction of port, an EA official who was also present hailed him over.


    ¡°Virgil Quinn?¡± the official asked.


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s me.¡±


    ¡°Did you have a good look at the situation by the port?¡± he asked. ¡°As you know, satellite imaging doesn¡¯t work on monsters so we have to rely on visuals from people on the scene.¡± As the EA official spoke, a military officer also came over.


    ¡°Just what on earth is going on over there?¡± the officer asked. ¡°HQ says there haven¡¯t been any communications sent by any of our ships for the last fifteen minutes!¡± Virgil looked at the EA official.


    ¡°Please answer the Colonel¡¯s question.¡±


    ¡°...it is very bad.¡±


    ¡°How bad?¡± the EA official asked.


    ¡°Really, really bad.¡±


    ¡°Out with it, man! Give us the details!¡± Virgil really didn¡¯t want to get into it. Not because he thought it was too bothersome to be talking to this officer, but because he was getting the sinking suspicion of what he would have to do after telling him. ¡°You are here to support us in any way you can. Hurry up and tell us what was on the scene or I will be sure to file a report against you!¡±


    ¡°The Boss showed up. It had giant tentacles, probably hundreds of feet long. I saw it drag down a ship.¡±


    ¡°Just one ship?¡± the EA official asked quickly, wanting to cut off the Colonel.


    ¡°Well¡­it probably sank the other ships as well.¡±


    ¡°Probably?¡±


    ¡°I was already running away so I didn¡¯t see. There was also fog over the water.¡±


    ¡°You ran away right when the monster showed up?! What kind of-¡±


    ¡°Mr. Quinn!¡± the EA official exclaimed, interrupting the colonel, ¡°we thank you for coming here to support the Outbreak defense however you can. Your statements are incredibly valuable to us in this regard. Could you please go on describing the situation of when you arrived at the port and up until you retreated?¡± Virgil looked at the Colonel, but he remained silent for now. Virgil did as he was asked and recounted everything in detail, with the exception of his thoughts during the events. When he finished, the Colonel spoke up before the EA official.


    ¡°So, you¡¯re saying this monster can cause the seas to rage, and produce a fog that can disrupt communications?¡±


    ¡°Probably. I know that there is mana in the fog, but I cannot say for sure if that is the cause of the communications disruption. It might be caused by some other magic that the Boss has.¡± At that moment the Colonel was called over by another soldier and he left.


    ¡°That was quite amazing, Mr. Quinn. We certainly do not expect a C-rank Dungeoneer to take on a B-rank Boss by themselves and keeping the other monsters at bay while also supporting the navy against the Mid-Bosses is an exceptional contribution. This is especially so considering you are the only Dungeoneer here.¡±


    ¡°Right¡­so, does that mean I can go now? I don¡¯t think I can do anything against that Boss after all.¡±


    ¡°Of course, you can leave. Under no circumstances could a civilian be forced to remain on a battlefield, even if they are a Dungeoneer.¡±


    ¡°And I¡¯ll still get paid? Fully?¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± the EA official suddenly let out, ¡°well¡­the Earth Alliance does have funds set up to pay Dungeoneers who participate in defending against Dungeon Outbreaks¡­but I am assuming you are referring to the amount that Merrick¡¯s government offered.¡±


    ¡°Yes. So, it¡¯s fine now, right? The military is here now, anyways.¡± Virgil held on to a tiny hope of hearing what he wanted to hear despite the EA official¡¯s uncomfortable expression.


    ¡°The Earth Alliance is not responsible for those additional funds.¡± Virgil¡¯s disappointment was obvious on his face. ¡°But, rest assured, I will put in a word on your behalf attesting to your contributions!¡± Virgil wasn¡¯t reassured at all. At that moment, a soldier came over to them.


    ¡°Mr. Cadbury, the Colonel is requesting that you come meet him now.¡±


    ¡°What about me?¡± Virgil asked.


    ¡°The Colonel is only requesting Mr. Cadbury to come.¡±


    ¡°So, do I have to stay here, then?¡± The soldier hesitated in responding.


    ¡°If the Colonel is calling me over to go over the Outbreak Defense, I think it would be wise for Mr. Quinn to join us,¡± Mr. Cadbury suggested. The soldier thought about the matter silently. ¡°You can tell him that I insisted on it.¡±


    The soldier finally nodded and guided the two of them to the military¡¯s temporary strategy room. The soldier announced the arrival of the EA official and the Dungeoneer and the Colonel said to let them in. When Virgil came inside, the Colonel shot him a curious look, but did not say anything to him directly.


    ¡°Thank you for coming,¡± the colonel began. ¡°We have just received an update on the port from the helicopters that we sent over for reconnaissance. In addition, HQ also recently received word from a submarine that retreated from the battle. Currently, the situation looks like this. With the exception of that one submarine, the entire naval force that was present has sunk. It is unknown if any of their crews survived. At least three hundred giant piranha-like monsters remained, as well as at least two hundred giant squid-like monsters. There is also a giant monster that lurks in the waters. Radar was entirely ineffective in locating it and visuals of the monster can only suggest that it is a gigantic monster that is likely at least several hundred feet in length. Its overall body can only be described as dark or shadowy.¡± The colonel briefly looked directly at Virgil. ¡°The waters appear to be rough and fog covers an area of more than two square miles, its size fluctuating slightly. There is no visual confirmation of any monster above the water¡¯s surface and no confirmation of any distinctive features of the giant monster such as having tentacles.¡±


    ¡°Well, I saw what I saw,¡± Virgil commented.


    ¡°For now, we will continue to monitor the situation,¡± the Colonel said, ignoring Virgil. ¡°In the mean time, five bomber jets are en route to provide support if the monsters resurface.¡±


    ¡°I understand. That sounds good so far. Unfortunately, the Earth Alliance is not able to offer much support at this time since all the members of our Emergency Dungeon Task Force are otherwise preoccupied at the moment. For now, we can only hope the situation does not worsen.¡±


    Suddenly, images flashed through Virgil¡¯s head. He saw a giant octopus-like monster with five of its tentacles brought together. Above them was some kind of glowing symbol. Then, he saw giant waves of water making their way to the port. Then, he suddenly saw the city¡¯s streets completely flooded. A second later, he then saw powerful winds blowing through the city, blasting cars through the flooded streets and into buildings. The sudden revelation made his knees give out and he collapsed onto the table.


    ¡°Mr. Quinn, what¡¯s wrong? Are you alright?¡± Mr. Cadbury asked.


    ¡°...the evacuation of the city. How is that going so far?¡± Virgil asked as he picked himself back up.


    ¡°An evacuation order has been sent out and the Earth Alliance, the police, and the military are doing their best to ensure an orderly evacuation for most of the city.¡±


    ¡°Only most of the city?¡±


    ¡°The projected scale of the monsters¡¯ reach is limited, especially since they are sea monsters.¡±


    ¡°How many people are still in the city?¡±


    ¡°The initial evacuation was quite slow, but the pace is improving steadily at the moment.¡±


    ¡°How many people are still in the city?¡± Virgil repeated.


    ¡°I would estimate¡­maybe between three to four million people,¡± Mr. Cadbury answered with concern. ¡°Why are you asking about that?¡±


    ¡°You know something,¡± the Colonel stated. ¡°Out with it.¡±


    ¡°A giant storm is going to flood the city. Maybe.¡±


    ¡°Maybe?¡± Mr. Cadbury asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe it won¡¯t happen,¡± Virgil responded as he prepared to leave the room.


    ¡°Stop right there!¡± the Colonel ordered. ¡°Explain what you mean!¡± Virgil described the images that he saw, and then prepared to leave again.


    ¡°Wait, Mr. Quinn. Based on what you saw, does this mean that the Boss monster is going to use magic to summon a giant storm, like a hurricane, in order to destroy the city?¡±


    ¡°Maybe,¡± he answered briefly before leaving. Mr. Cadbury and the Colonel quickly ran after him.


    ¡°Mr. Quinn! If your Skill was able to see this, then perhaps there is also some way to prevent it.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to have to kill that sucker before it uses its magic,¡± the Colonel suggested.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯ll probably work,¡± Virgil said, still walking away. ¡°Hey, do you have a car I can borrow. I mean, I¡¯ll rent it if you need me to.¡±


    ¡°Are you just planning to run away?¡± the Colonel asked angrily.


    ¡°I¡¯m not one of your soldiers. If I want to run away, I will run away.¡± Virgil looked to Mr. Cadbury again. ¡°So, can I borrow a car or not?¡± The Colonel grabbed Virgil by the shoulder, but didn¡¯t have anywhere near the strength to actually keep him in place. ¡°No car? Fine, I¡¯ll run.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Quinn! Is there really nothing you can think of to help?¡± Virgil stopped.


    ¡°What do you want from me? I already told you that the Boss monster is going to flood the city. I don¡¯t know when but if you want to stop that from happening, go kill it. If not, then get as many people out of here as you can.¡± Virgil then stared at the Colonel. ¡°What are you waiting for? Make the call.¡±


    ¡°...the five bomber jets will arrive in about half an hour. They are each carrying twelve of Merrick¡¯s most powerful cruise missiles. They are both powerful and incredibly accurate. Each missile is capable of incapacitating warships or dealing critical damage to enemy fortifications.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like you¡¯re good to go, then.¡±


    ¡°But, they are not intended to be used against underwater targets. According to you, even when this monster attacked the ships, it only used its tentacles, never revealing any part of its main body.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s your point?¡±


    ¡°Unless we can lure its main body out of the water, it won¡¯t be possible to kill it. If it just stays underwater while using its magic, we can¡¯t kill it. Not with what we have on hand.¡±


    ¡°...That¡¯s unfortunate, but what are you expecting from me?¡±


    ¡°Do you have any Skills that have any chance of making that monster want to come onto land? Or, at the very least, to come above the water¡¯s surface?¡±


    ¡°You think I have some kind of luring or provoking Skill? No, I don¡¯t have anything like that.¡±


    ¡°...Is that so?¡± the Colonel asked, his expression very serious.


    ¡°Yes.¡± Right as he said that, his body shuddered. Something terrible was happening right now. However, as he got ready to sprint away, his legs froze up, rooting him in place. His base survival instincts told them the only surefire way to survive was to run away right now, but another force was holding him down. Was it his greed for more money? Was it a sudden desire to be a hero? Was it the feeling of wanting to avoid the guilt from abandoning millions of innocent lives? Maybe, it was the desire to avoid the feeling of shame when his sickly mother finds out about this. No, it was none of these things. All of these things definitely weighed on Virgil¡¯s mind but even together, his own life still meant more to him. At least, he truly believed that was the case as he cursed his Skill for making him act against his own will.


    ¡°Mr. Quinn?¡± Mr. Cadbury asked while Virgil¡¯s body was still frozen in the middle of running away. Virgil finally freed himself and stumbled backwards.


    ¡°Thirty minutes until the bombers get here?¡± Virgil asked the Colonel.


    ¡°Uh¡­yes.¡±


    ¡°Let me borrow one of your vehicles.¡± The Colonel quickly went from confusion back to anger. ¡°I don''t want to go back to the port on foot.¡± Back to confusion again.


    ¡°Does this mean you figured out a way to draw out the Boss?¡± Mr. Cadbury asked expectantly.


    ¡°...yes,¡± Virgil lied. He had no idea what specifically he needed to do, but he had no choice but go back there since he couldn¡¯t run away.


    ¡°Colonel, please cooperate with Mr. Quinn.¡± The Colonel finally snapped out of it and did as the EA official asked. ¡°And is there anything else you need for your plan?¡±


    ¡°...No.¡± They gave him a vehicle and Virgil got in alone, refusing a driver. At first, he tried to turn the wheel to get out of the city, but his body would not allow him to go through with it. He clicked his tongue and muttered something under his breath as he drove back to the port.


    On the way to the port, he received an update in the car from the military. They informed him that helicopters noticed that the waters seemed to be even rougher now, although it was still difficult to see through the layer of fog on top. In addition, some of the giant squid-like monsters started to leave the water and go onto land again. The giant piranhas were nowhere in sight.


    When Virgil arrived at the port, it was as it was described. There were a few dozen giant squids on the port, but they were not rampaging around like they were earlier. By the waterside, giant squids were slowly coming onto land, a couple at a time. However, it looked like it was a struggle to do so. They didn¡¯t look injured, but their movements looked severely hampered, and he saw one of them suddenly fall back into the wall. Virgil drove close to the port and could feel the intense concentration of mana started to gather beneath the waves.


    He got out of the vehicle and started walking towards the water¡¯s edge. Even as he approached, the giant squids seemed to ignore them as they got further away from the water, as if they were slowly fleeing. One of the giant squids even went right past him, and when it did, Virgil could sense a different sort of mana attached to the monster. Virgil kept walking closer to the source of danger as another pair of giant squids slowly made their way past them, oblivious to his presence. Then, when he was less than 100 feet away from the water, he sensed the mana attached to one of the giant squids flare up.


    He looked back as the giant squid suddenly fell over. Its tentacles feebly writhed about as its body seemed to start shrinking. Then, when the creature was down to almost half its size, its entire body turned blue. There was then a flash of light and Virgil saw clumps of blue light appear and get sucked away into the ocean. There was no black mist. After all of the blue light disappeared into the ocean, Virgil felt the huge source of mana underwater grow just a little bit stronger.


    Another giant squid fell over, and it too started writhe about as its body started to shrink. This time, Virgil, with his C-rank Bow out, knocked a magical arrow and shot it through its head. The monster died and sparks of blue light flew out just before it turned into the usual black mist. The blue sparks flew into the ocean, and then Virgil could feel an ominous presence envelop the entire port. The waters began to churn as the great beast below inched its way back to water¡¯s surface.


    ¡°Ah¡­goddamnit,¡± Virgil let out, fully recognizing he had just angered the Boss.

 Coastal Defense (Part 2)

    Date:  March 20, 2021 - 8:39 pm


    Location: Merrick


    An enormous, train-sized tentacle broke through the water¡¯s surface and slammed into port, breaking apart concrete and sending huge pieces of debris flying through the air. The tentacle slammed down near Virgil¡¯s prior location, but he had already sprinted away a couple seconds earlier. A second tentacle erupted out from the seas and slammed down as well, further smashing into the concrete of the port.


    Virgil obviously had zero intention of getting anywhere near the tentacles and continued to flee from the waterside. However, before he could get more than a hundred feet away, one of the giant squid-like monsters started to glow.  Forced to act as the hero, Virgil halted his retreat in order to shoot another arrow at the squid to kill it.  As with the one before, only small wisps of blue light came out before transforming into the expected black mist. By now, Virgil was pretty confident in assuming that the Boss monster had some kind of ability that allowed it to sacrifice the other monsters and convert them into mana. Why? Well, he hasn¡¯t confirmed it yet, but whatever spell or ritual the Boss was working on must consume more mana that it otherwise has.


    As further evidence to confirm Virgil¡¯s thoughts, the Boss monster¡¯s head could now be seen surfacing from the ocean, clearly driven to deal with whomever was interfering with it. The concrete groaned and cracked from the suckers of its tentacles glued onto the port, acting as the much-needed anchors in order to pull its colossal body from out of the water. Its entire body still could not be seen, but without any doubt, nothing fit the description of a kraken more than this creature. Its body was similar to that of a giant octopus and it was almost completely black. A thin layer of fog also seemed to swirl around it.  Its head alone was around the size of an apartment building and its tentacles were at least two hundred feet long. Sunken on either side of its massive, long, round head was a giant, oval-shaped eye. There were no discernible pupils or irises, they were both just a solid, luminescent blue.


    Before its body was more than halfway out of the water, its grip on the port disappeared as the great pressure from its tentacles¡¯ suckers further smashed apart the port¡¯s concrete. The Boss fell back into the water and large waves of water came surging out over the port, enveloping some of the fleeing giant squids.  One particular squid started to glow blue as the sudden tide of water washed over it and then attempted to pull it back into the ocean. This hardly served as an added difficulty for Virgil, though, and he killed it from afar with ease.


    An ominous, low bellow could now be heard originating from the kraken, although Virgil couldn¡¯t be sure from what part of its body exactly. It was impossible to read the kraken¡¯s expression, but it was definitely annoyed. If it had full use of all eight of its tentacles, it would not be struggling so much, but five of them had to be used to maintain the flow of mana for its ritual, and a sixth had to be used to collect the mana from the sacrificed monsters. This was an ideal situation for Virgil as he could continue to safely shoot at the squid monsters from afar as the kraken had to try again to force itself onto the port using only two of its tentacles.


    However, Virgil still did not want to close to the kraken for any longer than necessary. Confident in his long-ranged shots, he started running far away from the port as the kraken slowly started to drag itself back onto the port. It laid out its two tentacles onto some smoother parts of the port this time to avoid suddenly losing its grip again. Finally, the kraken made landfall, and when it did, the ocean¡¯s fog extended onto the port as well and obscured the remaining giant squids.


    Virgil took a second to think. He was now near the military jeep he drove earlier and the bomber planes were set to arrive in just a few more minutes. From this distance, he could no longer stop any further sacrifices due to the fog, but as far as he was concerned, he had already accomplished his mission when the kraken came onto the surface. However, he also realized that he would probably have to continue to stick around. If he left right now, then there was the chance the kraken would just go back underwater. So, he just waited.


    The kraken initially tried to move closer towards Virgil, but it found out that it was much more difficult to drag itself across the concrete now that its entire body was on land. Very quickly, it gave up on that and just stayed where it was. Virgil and the kraken were practically in a staring contest with each other, neither making any more attempts to attack. However, as time went on, more giant squids were sacrificed under the fog and Virgil could sense the terrifying source of mana continue to grow. For just a second, Virgil considered running towards the kraken again in order to kill off more squids. Well, not really. Virgil easily convinced himself that all he needed to do was continue to wait for the bomber planes. Surely, they would arrive before the kraken was finished with gathering the mana it needed for its spell.


    As the two sides remained passive to each other, Virgil heard something from the military jeep.


    ¡°Mr. Quinn?! Hello? Please come in, Mr. Quinn?!¡± Virgil kept his eyes on the kraken as he slowly moved over to answer the transmission.


    ¡°Hello,¡± he said, still cautious of any sudden movements from the kraken.


    ¡°Mr. Quinn, are you able to move?¡± Mr. Cadbury asked.


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Great, then, please get out of there now. The bomber planes will be here in¡­two minutes and then they will begin their assault.¡± Finally, Virgil thought to himself. And then, he thought to himself, wait, you¡¯re only telling me this now? What if I didn¡¯t pick up?


    ¡°Alright, got it.¡± Virgil stared at the kraken again for a bit to see if it was going to suddenly do something else, but it made no unusual movements. If Virgil got into the car and drove off right now, then he should be able to make a perfectly safe getaway. But, his sense of foreboding was still there. Rather than risk suddenly freezing up again, he chose to remain at the port until that feeling of dread dissipated. Two minutes later, he received another transmission.


    ¡°Mr. Quinn, are you still there? We have confirmed visual that the kraken is still on land and the bomber planes will be launching their assault in just one minute. Please, confirm where you are.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m¡­a bit away from the port.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? Are you far enough away?¡± Virgil has always trusted his survival instincts and even now, after being told that missiles were going to be launched into his area soon, his instincts still weren¡¯t telling him to run away yet.


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m far enough away.¡±


    ¡°Alright, please make your way back to the perimeter,¡± Mr. Cadbury responded, letting out a sigh of relief.


    The attack began with two missiles, fired one after the other. Only two were launched at first to ensure that kraken was not using some kind of ability to distort distance or aim. Both of them connected onto the kraken¡¯s massive head. The missiles blew apart chunks of the kraken¡¯s flesh and left burn marks tens of feet long across its skin. Despite it only looking like superficial injuries, It let out an ominous groan after receiving the blows and it finally started to shift its body, no longer staring at Virgil.


    Four missiles came next. Two of them connected with the kraken¡¯s head again, but the other two were blocked by its tentacles. The missiles continued to leave burns across the kraken and the two tentacles also received a noticeable amount of damage. They weren¡¯t blown apart, but if they received another direct hit or two, they probably would be. However, the kraken also realized how serious the damage could likely become. The kraken continued to turn its body around. It rotated slowly using its two free tentacles, five of its tentacles still together at a single point to maintain the magic circle for its spell and the sixth still drawing in more mana from the sacrifices.


    Virgil¡¯s sense of danger flared up at that exact moment. The kraken was not turning so that it could better defend against the incoming attacks, but so that it could return to the ocean. Virgil immediately dashed towards the waterside once more. In that instant, Virgil put more faith in the accuracy of the following missiles than his chances at surviving a sudden tsunami if the Boss succeeded in fleeing and finishing its spell.


    When Virgil was within two hundred feet of the kraken¡¯s head, he was now running past its five tied tentacles, which made no movements towards them as they were otherwise preoccupied. He was also now able to see some of the giant squids that were still crawling around on the port. He quickly shot and killed one of them right as it was glowing blue, but the kraken did not seem to care. Virgil had to keep running and eventually it came right next to its massive head.


    Virgil shot another would-be sacrifice but the tremors on the port did not cease as the mighty beast continued to turn its body all the way around using its two free tentacles. Left with no other option, Virgil jumped onto one of the kraken¡¯s non-moving tentacles and aimed at one of the kraken¡¯s eyes. It did not seem to notice him at all as he took a couple seconds to apply Armour Pierce to his arrow. He fired the arrow and it bounced off its eye. However, it did seem to hurt it. It was like a light poke to the eye, but it was still a sensitive organ.


    The kraken paused its retreat and coiled its two tentacles back to slam down on the Dungeoneer behind its head. The first of its tentacles came crashing down on the spot where Virgil stood, but he had already jumped off it and landed closer to its head. This may have been a mistake though, as this area of the body had less even footing and there seemed to be a layer of mucus covering it as well. Virgil nearly slipped as the second tentacle swung in to swat him away. Virgil kicked off of the kraken¡¯s body to fall back towards the ground in order to avoid the tentacle. The force of the wind alone was enough to change the direction of the fall as he crashed and tumbled into the concrete, which was covered in debris. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    Any ordinary person¡¯s head would have smashed apart when it smacked into the debris but he was a relatively powerful Dungeoneer. Instead, his head broke the debris into pieces and was left without a scratch. What he did need to be concerned about though, was that the tentacles were already coming at him again. He got back onto his feet as quickly as possible, bow still firmly in hand, and started sprinting away again. One tentacle smashed down onto the port, but with his enhanced perception and insight, he dodged just in time and only faced a shower of debris. Before the second tentacle could smash into the ground as well, the next round of missiles finally arrived.


    As the missiles exploded against the kraken¡¯s body, even Virgil who was more than a hundred feet away could feel a massive wave of heat and wind blast him from behind. Combined with the deafening sound of the explosion, he was disoriented for just a split second, but that was enough to cause him to trip and tumble. As he did, the kraken¡¯s second tentacle crashed down onto the ground, just a few feet away from him. This added impact shook the port and knocked Virgil slightly up into the air where he also continued to be assaulted by chunks of debris. None of this did any serious damage to him, but it was eating into his stamina.


    The explosions finally ended, but even without turning around, Virgil knew the kraken lived. Virgil got back up and glanced behind him just to double check anyways. The kraken¡¯s head was still mostly intact, but there were huge chunks that were blown off. It was also hard to tell since its body was black, but burns were now seared across almost every part of its head. Virgil didn¡¯t know the exact number of missiles that were fired so far, but if there were sixty in total, there should still be more than half of them left. Virgil grimaced about how close this was going to get.


    After receiving the second barrage, the kraken decided to ignore Virgil again. It pulled back its tentacles and brought them to the edge of the port. The whole port shook as the monster began dragging itself back to the water¡¯s edge.


    Suicidal was definitely not a word that would be used to describe Virgil before today. However, to any onlookers, what else would most people think as Virgil ran as fast as he could back towards the kraken¡¯s head. Not only was he racing towards a creature that didn¡¯t even bleed after getting shot in the eye, but he was also running closer to a point where dozens of missiles were going to start streaming in any minute now.


    Virgil easily got back near the kraken¡¯s head. He fired another enhanced arrow at its eye, but it hardly seemed to recoil at all as he continued to pull itself over the port¡¯s edge. If nothing stopped it, it would finally resubmerge itself in about half a minute. Truly bold action was required. Virgil created another arrow, applied Armour Pierce again, but did not nock it onto his bow. He put away the bow into his inventory and jumped onto the kraken right next to its eye so that it could stab the arrow into it using both of his hands. The first blow didn¡¯t work, nor did the second or third. And then, Virgil started just scraping the arrow across the eye in desperation.


    Skill upgraded: Archery Mastery D to Archery Mastery C


    The arrow finally went through and black blood sprayed out. The kraken recoiled in pain at the unbelievable success of Virgil¡¯s bullshit plan. Virgil lost his footing when the kraken¡¯s body shook.  The kraken swung back its tentacles, one after the other, to finally crush this annoyance. Instead of jumping back onto the debris-filled port this time, he moved to behind the kraken¡¯s head and stuck the arrow into its body in order to avoid falling off. The tentacles both narrowly missed him as he was practically hugging the back of its head.


    However, he couldn¡¯t stay there since more missiles would be arriving any second now. He also couldn¡¯t risk running straight back down the port either since the two tentacles could close in on him. So, he jumped onto one of the other tentacles and ran as fast he could while still maintaining his footing.


    One of the tentacles swept towards him. If he jumped down, he could easily avoid it, but then he would be running on the port in between two tentacles. Those two wouldn¡¯t attack him, but it would be very difficult to avoid another tentacle coming down on him from above. Therefore, his only option was to jump. He jumped over the tentacle as it brushed past the one underneath, and he just barely got enough height to avoid being drawn into the rushing wind of the swinging tentacle.


    Now, the second tentacle came swinging at him. If nothing else happened, this tentacle would be brushing past the tentacle he was running along just a second before he landed again. That would mean there probably wouldn¡¯t be enough time to jump up again. That means the safest option would be to drop down on the ground to narrowly avoid the attack. However, doesn¡¯t that just put him in the same spot as before. Virgil¡¯s Skill told him no.


    Virgil fell to the ground as the tentacle swept right above him, the force of the wind pulling his body along slightly and causing him to tumble into the ground. However, he did not get back up, instead, he stayed low on the ground and covered his head with hands. Before the kraken could pull its tentacles back, the final barrage of missiles arrived.


    Missile after missile, each within less than a few seconds of the other rained down upon the monster. Virgil remained on the ground, protecting himself as best as he could as explosion after explosion sent shockwaves throughout the nearby area. The kraken realized it was starting to receive critical damage and it used its two free tentacles to block some of the missiles. A couple explosions later, a section of its tentacle was blown off but the kraken continued to defend itself with what remained. Continuous explosions continued to blast off sections of its blocking tentacles until there was nothing left it could use to defend.


    In desperation, the kraken canceled the sacrificial magic on its third tentacle and used that to defend as well. For some reason unknown to Virgil, it still would not use any of its other five tentacles to defend. This was to humanity¡¯s benefit, of course, as the third tentacle was quickly blown apart as well and another fifteen missiles continued to blast the kraken¡¯s head to pieces.


    The barrage finally concluded, and Virgil slowly got back up after about ten seconds of silence. The kraken still lived. Not only was it still alive, but throughout the entire bombardment, its remaining five tentacles were still dedicated to maintaining its prepared spell. Virgil could hardly believe it. When it looked at the kraken¡¯s head, he could see that nearly half of it was blown apart. Both of its eyes were also destroyed and no longer glowed.  Black blood dripped profusely all around what remained of the creature¡¯s head and three destroyed tentacles.


    Virgil calmly took out his C-rank bow from his Inventory again. He created another magical arrow and enhanced it with Armour Pierce. He aimed it at the part of its head that seemed to be most heavily damaged and exposed. He made sure his aim was steady as he tried not to think about what to do if this failed. He hit his target and the arrow pierced through the kraken¡¯s burnt skin. When that happened, There was a brief flash of light from behind him and Virgil could sense a mana fluctuation.


    Virgil looked back again and saw the magic circle glowing and flashing erratically. He was not sure what that meant exactly, but he definitely sensed that this could be trouble. Well, more troublesome than it already was since the kraken still wasn¡¯t dead. Virgil started running again. He ran away from the kraken, but not to flee the port. This was in preparation for a different plan. He needed the extra distance now and it wasn¡¯t like being another few hundred feet away was going to make a difference for the next shot.


    The magic circle¡¯s started to flash even brighter and Virgil could feel himself on the precipice of life and death. Right now, in these next few seconds, if he made the wrong move he would almost certainly die. He spun back around, nocked his final magical arrow and used up the last of his mana to enhance it. He was starting to pant heavily as he struggled to keep the bow steady for this final shot. Right as he sensed the mana spike to what he thought was an impossible level, he fired the arrow at the kraken¡¯s head once more.


    Was Virgil insane? The last shot didn¡¯t kill it so why would the second. If anything, from what he could guess about the sudden mana surge, it was clear that that the spell was about to be completed. How was it about to be completed with no more sacrifices? Virgil didn¡¯t know nor care. Maybe it was being used prematurely as a weaker or more risky version for the caster. Maybe the kraken was draining away its own life force. That simply wasn¡¯t important to Virgil and had no bearing on the reason as to why Virgil shot where he did.


    Now, back to what Virgil did do, and why. Wouldn¡¯t it be a better idea to try to interrupt the spell by shooting his magical arrow directly at the magic circle? That may sound like a good idea, but there were a few reasons why Virgil did not do this. First, Virgil has no practical experience in dealing with spellcasting monsters, or at least, not with ones that would use rituals or magic circles.  As far as Virgil knew, the magic circle was simply made of mana, and therefore, his arrow wouldn¡¯t likely affect it. The arrow was created from mana, and it was also further enchanted, but it still possessed a physical form. It¡¯s not like anything struck by his arrow suffers anything other than only physical damage.


    Well, maybe it wouldn¡¯t affect the magic circle, but what about the tentacle itself? Clearly, seeing how the kraken refused to move any of its remaining five tentacles even when it was reduced to this vulnerable state, piercing through one of the tentacles seems to be a more likely bet in preventing the spell from fully activating. This is where the second reason comes in. Virgil simply didn¡¯t think he could deal enough damage to the tentacles. He could barely pierce its eye after his Archery Mastery Skill went up a rank, and the earlier arrow only penetrated the kraken¡¯s head because the outer layer of its skin was blown apart. Each of these five tentacles were fully intact and judging from their strength and use in defending against cruise missiles, they were likely too durable to be pierced.


    But, why the head again? Isn¡¯t it just a lost cause, then? Isn¡¯t his only remaining course of action to just continue fleeing to survive the oncoming storm? At the very least, the kraken didn¡¯t seem to be in a good enough state to try anything else. Well, here¡¯s where the third, and possibly most important reason comes in. Virgil wasn¡¯t the greatest swimmer and he didn¡¯t know what else to do. He was hoping to just get really lucky here.


    The arrow pierced through the kraken¡¯s head, this time going in just an inch deeper. The kraken¡¯s damaged brain registered the impact just before the spell was about to finally be completed. This caused the kraken to completely forget about its magic for just a split second. But it was a split second at the most critical time for a spell that required far more concentration than normal. The spell backfired and there was an instant backlash of mana. The concentrated mana rapidly began to disperse, and much of it traveled throughout the kraken¡¯s body. It ran through its tentacles, causing them to overheat, burn up, and then explode, all in very quick succession. As the tentacles fried up from the mana, the surging magic continued to the kraken¡¯s head and reached the brain. Even after dispersing and radiating throughout the tentacles, more mana reached the brain than the kraken¡¯s ordinary maximum capacity. Its brain overloaded instantly and exploded as well.


    It didn¡¯t end there, though. The backlash of mana completely destroyed the kraken¡¯s mana, but there was still tons of mana left over from all the sacrifices. The instant after the kraken¡¯s body was blown apart, another massive explosion of mana occurred. Everything within a hundred feet was completely disintegrated. From there, a powerful shockwave radiated across the port. Virgil, who was already running away again right after firing his arrow, barely managed to get behind a warehouse right as the shockwave hit. Everything not tied to the ground was immediately launched up into the air and even the walls of the warehouses shook violently. Before the shockwave dissipated, the roofs were blown apart and the closer warehouses to the explosion were completely ripped off the ground as well.


    Miraculously, Virgil¡¯s warehouse, despite losing its roof and having two of its walls cave in, was still relatively intact. However, after the shockwave had dissipated, something else happened.  When the explosion destroyed a section of the port, it also created a massive hole in the water as well. When the shockwave dissipated, the tons and tons of water that was pushed back was now surging back to fill in the massive gap. A massive wall of water, at least sixty feet high came crashing against the port. The already damaged warehouses could not withstand any longer, and they were swept into the rushing flood, including the warehouse Virgil hid behind.


    The warehouse walls were swept up in the wave and slammed against Virgil. His stamina was almost completely drained and he could only desperately hug onto the walls as they were dragged along by the water. As his grip started to slip and the potential of drowning started to surface, he received a notification.


    B-rank Dungeon Boss (Servant of the Sea God) defeated.


    Strength increased by 50


    Stamina increased by 50


    Magic increased by 50


    New Skill acquired: Water Magic Affinity D


    Skill Upgraded: Vigilance B (Unique) to Vigilance A (Unique)


    With the increase of Stamina, Virgil managed to hang on and survive. He was bashed up against other solid objects multiple times along the way, but they were nothing much for a Dungeoneer of his Stats. By the end of it, he found himself seated on the ground more than a thousand feet away from where he started, with his clothes torn up and drenched. He was exhausted once more due to his struggle in staying above water and he had also lost his C-rank Bow in the water at some point.


    ¡°I guess I have to go¡­and find it¡­¡± Virgil said weakly, coughing up a bit of water. His body had come to rest at this point, but he was still surrounded by water that almost reached his shoulders. With great effort, he pulled himself back onto his feet, but nearly slipped and fell back in. Overhead, he could hear the sound of a helicopter flying nearby. ¡°Yeah, can¡¯t forget to find my¡­bow¡­¡±


    Virgil could now see a spotlight shining down on the water about a hundred feet away from him. Perhaps still in a daze, Virgil made no attempt to shout at the helicopter as he tried to spread his feet for better footing in the flood. Eventually, despite his silence, the helicopter¡¯s light shone upon him and they called out to him. Instead of responding, Virgil continued to look for his bow somewhere in the water. At that moment, there were only three things going through his head. His bow, not drowning, and then probably retiring.

 Dinner (ft. Santiago)

    Date: June 19, 2020 - 5:11 pm


    Location: Colombo


    A week after the month of constant C-rank Dungeon manifestations, things had settled down a bit again and Juan Ramirez of the EA was heading to the Madrazo estate. A few days earlier, he received a ¡°special promotion¡±. After he gave his report about the events of the first C-rank Dungeon Sierra Madrazo had attempted to clear, he was then put in charge of relaying communications between her and the EA. After acting as her supporter (in terms of providing information) for the next two C-rank Dungeon clears she participated in, the higher ups in the EA decided on a unique approach.


    From now on, Juan Ramirez will act as Sierra Madrazo¡¯s manager. This was done because the EA thought this was the most practical way in getting her to follow the Uniform Guidelines from then on since she refused to officially work for the EA. It also had to be Juan Ramirez because he was the only one with anything close to a working relationship with her. Most of the other employees also simply didn¡¯t want to do it. Mr. Ramirez, though, initially didn''t think it was such a bad deal. His pay was increased and his workload was also likely going to be reduced as well.


    Mr. Ramirez drove to the estate¡¯s gates, where he was let in by armed guards after checking his suit, briefcase, and car first. He was frisked two more times by armed guards, before entering the mansion, and again before entering the dining room. It was at this time, that Mr. Ramirez was starting to have second thoughts about his new assignment.


    Inside the dining room were Sierra Madrazo and a young man wearing work clothes seated at the end of a long table. He quickly looked at Mr. Ramirez when he heard the door open.  Sierra was wearing her signature red beret and her hair had grown out a bit more since last time. She also wore a black tank top, revealing many of her scars as well as her cockroach-shaped Dungeoneer mark.


    ¡°Juan, you¡¯re here!¡± she exclaimed. ¡°Have a seat.¡± She motioned towards the seat to her left, the seat on her right already occupied by the other man. Mr. Ramirez silently complied. As he walked over, he briefly glanced at the various dishes that were already laid out on the table. There were also various bottles of liquor set on the table as well. ¡°Try whatever you want.¡±


    ¡°I thank you for your hospitality, Sierra.¡± Juan couldn¡¯t help but continue to speak like this even though he was already used to calling her by her first name. Before taking his seat, he reached out his hand to the other man. ¡°My name is Juan Ramirez. I am from the Earth Alliance.¡± The other man swallowed before responding.


    ¡°S- Santiago,¡± he murmured as he limply shook Juan¡¯s hand. Oh, so this is the Santiago Sierra mentioned, Juan thought. He took a closer look at him to try and figure out something about him. Sierra seemed to notice and she spoke up.


    ¡°He¡¯s a delivery man,¡± she said.


    ¡°A delivery man?¡± Juan tried to hide his doubt.


    ¡°Y- yeah. I deliver packages around here.¡±


    ¡°I see.¡± Juan assumed that he was speaking in code or some sort of slang. He finally took a seat and then opened up a briefcase. He took out some documents and passed it over to Sierra. ¡°As you already know, the Earth Alliance has assigned me to serve as your manager from now on regarding all Dungeon-related activities.¡± Sierra laughed as she dropped the documents onto the floor beside her.


    ¡°Yeah, I remember. They made me agree to that before sending back all those monitors. But, what¡¯s that even supposed to mean? What are you going to be managing?¡±


    ¡°¡°The Earth Alliance takes the objectives of mutual international cooperation and mutual progress of humanity as its most important considerations. As such, when dealing with the global crisis of Dungeon manifestations, it is essential-¡±


    ¡°Just stop right there!¡± Sierra interrupted Juan¡¯s prepared explanation. ¡°I don¡¯t need to hear the whole spiel every time. Just answer me this. Are you just going to be watching me to make sure I don¡¯t go making any more surprise Dungeon visits, or is the EA going to be trying to give me orders.¡± Santiago seemed visibly nervous due to Sierra¡¯s serious tone.


    ¡°...Before I answer that, may I ask a couple questions first?¡±


    ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    ¡°Do you have absolutely no intention of joining the Earth Alliance?¡±


    ¡°You mean, like ¡°S¡±? No, I¡¯m not joining that task force or whatever it¡¯s called.¡±


    ¡°Would you prefer to have anyone else to act as your manager, instead?¡± Sierra looked at Juan with a bit of surprise.


    ¡°Do you know anyone else with the cajones to come all the way here by themself and act so bold in front of me?¡±


    ¡°Bold, you say¡­I am merely doing my duty as an official for the Earth Alliance.¡± Sierra smiled.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°This is why I like you, Juan. You are faithful to the way you are supposed to act. I¡¯ve never seen you crack or even get nervous this whole time. A lot different from Santiago here.¡± Sierra patted Santiago on the shoulder when she said this and he noticeably trembled. ¡°But, both of you are really brave.¡± Juan wasn¡¯t sure if that was the right word to describe Santiago at that moment but he made no comment about that.


    ¡°Should I take that to mean you are comfortable with this current arrangement?¡±


    ¡°I guess you could say that,¡± Sierra replied. ¡°Oh, wait.¡± Sierra laughed. ¡°Ah, almost got me there. You still haven¡¯t answered my question. What exactly does it mean for you to be my manager?¡±


    Juan briefly considered what to do next. He could try for a standard non-answer or try to talk around the question again, but he wasn¡¯t sure that would work. The truth was that obviously the EA wanted to do more than just monitor Sierra. They wanted Juan to try and influence her and convince her to go on joint operations with the Emergency Dungeon Task Force, among other things. Realistically, Juan didn¡¯t think there was any chance of getting Sierra to do anything she didn¡¯t want to do. Keeping in line with the character he has been playing this whole time, though, he couldn¡¯t just say all that. Juan decided he needed more time to think and appraise the situation so he started putting some food onto his plate to stall.


    ¡°This looks delicious. Do you eat this all the time?¡± It was a poor attempt at stalling, but Sierra didn¡¯t seem to mind.


    ¡°No, I usually eat something lighter than this.¡± She started taking some food herself as well as putting some on Santiago¡¯s plate. ¡°Come on, eat up. I¡¯ve invited you both to dinner, after all.¡±


    The three of them ate and Juan began to casually chat with Santiago. As it turned out, he really was just a delivery man. The same delivery man that had come across Sierra right after she defeated her first D-rank Dungeon Boss. After he drove off in fear, he actually returned again shortly afterwards because he had to deliver a package. He wanted to just drop it off and leave right away, but Sierra was still there. Sierra roared with laughter as she recounted the story.


    ¡°He looked like he was about to piss his pants when I grabbed him. If he was going to be that scared, why didn¡¯t he just leave the delivery for some other day or to someone else?¡± Santiago now looked just a tiny bit more embarrassed than nervous as Sierra playfully shook him. ¡°I told him that that was either the bravest or stupidest thing I had seen in a while. Well, after that, I told him to help me bandage myself and then I signed for the package.¡± Sierra laughed again.


    ¡°I see, that is quite interesting,¡± Juan responded while thinking in the back of his mind how unfortunate this turned out for Santiago.


    ¡°I had to be careful about who to talk to for a little while since my father¡¯s cousin tried to kill me so it was nice having Santiago around for a bit. It took me a week to round up most of those snakes, but a couple of them got away. Well, for a while, anyways.¡±


    ¡°I suppose that was quite the busy and stressful time,¡± Juan responded, treating this as normal conversation.


    ¡°Oh, this was the package by the way,¡± Sierra said, pointing at her red beret. ¡°What do you think? Does it look nice?¡±


    ¡°It suits you well.¡± Juan was mostly indifferent to her appearance, but he supposed it wasn¡¯t bad.


    ¡°You think? I didn¡¯t really care for it when I first saw it,¡± she said as she took it off and took a closer look.


    ¡°Oh?¡± Juan said, now wondering if he had just messed up. ¡°Then why did you buy it?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t. My father ordered it for me. I think he saw it on a page of some catalogue I was looking at. I was spending a bit too much money around that time so he canceled my credit card, but I guess he thought that this was something I really wanted so he bought it for me. Can you believe it took a whole month to arrive?¡±


    ¡°I see. A month-long delivery is quite unusual,¡± Juan responded, deciding to not comment on anything before the last question.¡±


    ¡°How about you, Juan? What¡¯s the last thing your father bought you?¡±


    ¡°Me? Well, I think that would be a watch from when I graduated from university.¡±


    ¡°I see. Santiago said the last thing he got from his dad was a pair of shoes.¡±


    ¡°Shoes?¡±


    ¡°Y- yeah. They were a new pair of running shoes for my eighth birthday,¡± said Santiago.


    ¡°And that was the last gift?¡± Juan asked, already regretting the question.


    ¡°Yeah, he was shot and killed a month later. It was by some gangster.¡± Santiago instantly looked down after he said this.


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t one of us,¡± Sierra said, even before Juan glanced over at her. "We don''t kill regular people."


    ¡°Is that what happened to your father as well?¡±


    ¡°Hmmm? No, my father was born with a heart condition and died from a heart attack.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I see. I am sorry to hear that.¡± Juan was now thinking about whether or not he should continue with this conversation topic.


    ¡°My mother, though, was shot and killed. Different gang, though. All dead now. My father made sure of it.¡± Juan tried to not let these open admissions affect his expression. ¡°You look like you¡¯re used to hearing these kinds of things,¡± she said, probably commenting on his passive face.


    ¡°It is not that I do not feel sad to hear them, but it is something that I come face to face with more often than I would like.¡± Sierra grabbed a couple bottles of liquor and put them down right in front of Juan.


    ¡°Do you drink, Juan? Maybe, just when you¡¯re feeling down and need to cheer up?¡± Sierra asked.


    ¡°No, I usually drink on happier occasions.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m kind of the same. I rarely drink outside of celebrations. Bad memories from when I was younger. But, I still like to see others get drunk.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s interesting.¡±


    ¡°So, would you call this a happy occasion?¡± Juan thought hard about this question.


    ¡°I think the host would know that best.¡±


    ¡°Interesting answer.¡± Sierra then looked back at Santiago. ¡°What do you think, Santiago? Is today a day worth celebrating?¡±


    ¡°Huh? Uh, I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Juan, do you think you can help out Santiago here? What do you think the right answer is?¡± Juan looked between the two of them and then picked up one of the bottles.


    ¡°Cheers to my promotion.¡± Juan hid his nervousness as he appraised Sierra¡¯s reaction. After a moment, she cracked a smile and laughed.


    ¡°Of course, cheers to your promotion. Go on, open it up.¡± Juan struggled to open the bottle and Sierra offered to open it instead. Juan instantly complied. After Sierra opened it, she poured for all three of them. She picked her glass up and the others followed suit, Juan before Santiago. ¡°So, my manager, what should I expect?¡± Juan finally decided to give his answer.


    ¡°You should expect a relationship that benefits both sides. And, if you don¡¯t think it does¡­I¡¯ll make sure to let my superiors know your complaints.¡± Juan knew that Sierra had no intention of being controlled by the Earth Alliance and he certainly wasn¡¯t planning to actually go out on a limb to try and change that. With this answer, he figured he dropped off a big enough hint that he, personally, was not going to get in her way.


    ¡°Looking forward to a good relationship as well.¡± Sierra seemed sufficiently satisfied with his response. She raised her glass, and the others followed suit. ¡°Cheers to that and cheers to me avoiding prison.¡± Juan decided to make no comment on that other part as she clinked her glass with his. The three drank from their glasses and then continued eating their dinner, while making casual conversation.


    Juan thought the food was great, by the way.

 Return of the Greatest Spearman

    Date: ????


    Location: ????


    A man lay on his back on a smouldering sheet of rock that floated in a river of lava under a charcoal sky. He wore what was probably once a radiant suit of golden armour and clutched a once brilliant, golden spear in his right hand. Both were now charred and almost completely blackened, and the part of the armour that covered his forearms and chest had been completely destroyed. His helmet was also partially melted and it continued to burn at his scalp. However, the man did not scream or even moan in pain. He continued to lie there, mainly because he had no strength to move, but also because of his feelings of solemn accomplishment.


    He was unable to turn his head, but from the corner of his eye, he could see a silver gauntlet still just slightly poking out of the flowing lava before completely sinking beneath the molten river. He lamented the loss and sacrifice of his partner as he patiently waited for when they would be reunited. Despite the extreme heat that sought to overpower all his senses, he could still feel that the rock he lay upon was breaking apart, and he would soon sink into the lava like his partner before him.


    Suddenly, the flow of the lava became more violent and small waves of it splashed over his tiny island, hastening its destruction. Then, everything around him shook. The man couldn¡¯t see it, and he wished to be unable to confirm it. Please, just let me die now before witnessing my failure.


    ¡°Remarkable.¡± A deep voice resounded throughout the man¡¯s head. No, it cannot be, he thought. ¡°To think, a pair of mortals could wound this one so.¡± The molten river surged again, but when a tide of lava was about to envelop the man, it suddenly split into two and splashed past either side of the floating rock. Then, the river of lava started to flow in the opposite direction, and the sheet of rock was dragged along with it.


    Soon, a great shadow loomed over the man and his island. From the moment he heard the voice, he knew it had to be true, but he still fervently wished it wasn¡¯t. He looked up, his face filled with a mix of hatred, despair, and regret. An enormous, red dragon rested before him. It could not be seen, but the dragon was not swimming or floating in the lava. It was simply so massive that everything above its chest could be seen despite resting on the molten riverbed that was at least forty feet deep. Notably, on its exposed chest was an open wound that was a few feet across and at least ten feet deep. Fire-like blood dripped out of it, and when the droplets hit the lava below, the lava sizzled and unnatural fires suddenly flared up on the lava¡¯s surface.


    ¡°It was an impressive performance.¡± The dragon leaned in closer after giving its condescending compliment. It was just out of sight from the man, but a silver spear was lodged into the dragon¡¯s right eye. ¡°Regardless of how brief it was, you should feel honoured to have downed this one for even a moment.¡± As the dragon continued to speak, the wound on its chest started to glow a burning red.


    ¡°Damn you¡­¡± the man weakly let out.


    ¡°And you even still have the strength to speak. Yes, this one is sufficiently convinced. Mortal, this one offers you a chance to serve the Dragon God. Although a mere mortal, this one is sure you will be a great addition to the Dragon God¡¯s army. Especially after taking in this one¡¯s blood.¡±


    ¡°N- never¡­I will never¡­¡±


    ¡°This one has heard many tales about the stubbornness of mortals. However, this one has battled you and deemed you worthy. This one is even offering its own blood to induct you into service of the Dragon God. This is an offer no other would offer to a new follower.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d rather¡­ die¡­¡± The man¡¯s despair and regret was completely gone now. No matter what, he would never join with the ones responsible for destroying his kingdom and killing everyone he ever knew and loved. With a sudden burst of strength, he tightened his grip on his spear, and got off of his back. However, just as quickly as it had come, it faded away. He nearly collapsed and barely remained on his two feet as he held onto his spear for balance with his right arm. His left arm had no feeling left whatsoever.You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    ¡°This one does not wish to negotiate.¡± The man could clearly hear a rising anger in the dragon¡¯s voice. ¡°However, this one also does not wish to kill one who could be reborn as a valued follower of the Dragon God. This one shall ask again. Will you serve the Dragon God?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± The man, despite his hoarse voice, tried his best to sound as imposing as possible, but he fell far short of his goal. The red dragon flapped its wings and the temperature of the air around them rose. The man fell over and his rock started to break apart faster now.


    ¡°You will choose to die a miserable death over choosing to receive this one¡¯s favour?!¡± Magical flames erupted from the dragon¡¯s wings and started to cover the river of lava.


    ¡°Yes¡­¡± The man did not bother to pump up his tone. He was already having problems staying conscious from the even greater heat and any attempts of bravado would only be self-serving at best. The magical flames now surged on his rock and quickly enveloped the man. It was excruciatingly painful, but it was also over in an instant.


    ****


    In a hospital room somewhere, a man finally opened his eyes after a two month long coma, loudly screaming as he did. After hearing his own voice, he suddenly stopped. A nurse who heard the screaming quickly entered the room and went up to the man. He turned his head with a confused look on his face.


    ¡°A- are you alright?!¡± she asked. The man blinked a couple times and then looked around the room.


    ¡°Where am I?¡±


    ¡°You are in a hospital.¡± The man continued to look around as if he didn¡¯t quite believe her. ¡°E- earlier, you were screaming. Are you in pain, right now?¡± The man suddenly lifted up his arms, which moved with relative ease. Then, he tried moving his legs, but nothing happened. ¡°Ah¡­sir-¡± The nurse¡¯s words were cut short when the man suddenly conjured a spear and then gripped it with his right hand. The nurse screamed and fell backwards. The man ignored the panicking nurse and examined the spear. It was very simple and had no adornments or any unusual characteristics. However, the man didn¡¯t think that to be a necessarily bad thing. It felt comfortable to hold and although he hadn¡¯t tested it yet, he was confident in its strength and sharpness.


    ¡°Woman, is this Allenven?¡± The nurse did not answer, and right after the question was asked, a doctor and another nurse entered the room.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± the doctor asked, clearly wondering about the nurse¡¯s scream. However, upon seeing the spear, he no longer needed an answer. He quickly brought up his hands and changed his tone. ¡°Sir, this is a hospital. We are here to treat you. Please, put away your weapon.¡±


    ¡°Man, is this Allenven?¡± The doctor took a few seconds to respond.


    ¡°No, you are in West Byzantine.¡± The doctor had no idea what Allenven was, but felt it was a bad idea to talk about that.


    ¡°I see. I figured as much.¡± The man knew it was foolish to hope that his kingdom had somehow survived. ¡°Then, tell me, what is the current situation of the war?¡± The man did not recognize what West Byzantine was, but he at least had the wherewithal to understand that he was now in a different time.


    ¡°T- the war?¡± The doctor knew it was bad to look confused when dealing with a distressed patient but he couldn¡¯t help it. ¡°Uh, I mean, well, there are no problems with any war right now.¡±


    ¡°What? Really?¡± He was feeling more excited than he had ever felt in a long time, but then another thought dawned on him. ¡°Wait¡­why did the war end?¡±


    ¡°...which war?¡± the doctor asked.


    ¡°Which war? What other war could I be talking about?!¡± Before the man¡¯s agitation grew even more, it suddenly started to fade. The sedatives administered through his IV were now starting to take effect.


    ¡°Sir, just relax. There is no war that you need to worry about.¡±


    ¡°B- but¡­why? Did you sell yourselves to the Gods?¡± The doctor and nurses ignored his question.


    ¡°Doctor, do you think that perhaps the patient is referring to the Dungeons? He used to be a Dungeoneer, after all.¡±


    ¡°Ah, you¡¯re right. The trauma from that is probably contributing to his distorted memories.¡±


    The hospital staff continued to talk, but the man could no longer hear them. He only felt numbness. Before falling unconscious, though, the man resolved himself to one thing. No matter what the rest of the world was planning to do, he would not stand for the reign of the Gods. He would absolve himself of his past failure and personally strike them down.

 Sorcerers Labyrinth (Part 1)

    The Roman Church, based in West Byzantine, is the most influential church in Europe. Their history began thousands of years ago and they have millions upon millions of followers even outside of Europe. However, when the Dungeons started to manifest a year ago, many people, followers or not, were curious about all the various religions¡¯ interpretations of the events.


    Eventually, the Roman Church released this kind of statement. The Dungeons were not one of God¡¯s creations. They were forces intended to bring about the ruin of humanity, God¡¯s children. However, God, in his infinite benevolence, wished to protect his children. Thus, God bestowed upon many of his children a mark of faith that granted them the Skills to push back the corrupting forces of evil.


    Why was the mark granted to so few, and why were many granted to non-followers of the Roman Church (or any other religion), though? It is because, although God loves us so much, God also wants humanity to grow together. Against such a global threat, it is unbelievable to think that God would be so petty as to shun all non-believers. Many humans still live and have the chance to change their lives, and God¡¯s gift to these non-believers is symbolic of his belief in us. Therefore, these marks are not necessarily a symbol that any particular individual is the most worthy of God¡¯s love. Nay, all humans are worthy of God¡¯s love, and this seemingly random distribution signifies the reality that no human is truly unworthy. If, perhaps, a non-believer would finally see the error of their ways and put their faith in God as He has unto us, then that is merely incidental.


    ****


    Date: March 20, 2021 - 2:29 pm


    Location: East Prussia


    A black sedan was on its way to East Prussia¡¯s first B-rank Dungeon. Inside the car were four people. There was the driver, who was a staff member of the Earth Alliance, and three men who were wearing black cassocks. After a short ride from the airport, they arrived at their location: a small hotel where the mission briefing would occur. The men in black cassocks left their vehicle one by one. The first one was wearing spectacles, the second was one wearing sunglasses, and the third man wore no eyewear at all, but had an unnatural walk. However, no one brought it up or offered any assistance.


    Inside the hotel, a woman looking outside the window saw the men exit the car.


    ¡°Looks like the last group is finally here,¡± she said. She turned back around to see the people around her, but they were mostly ignoring her. Closest to her was a group of people gathered around the seats of two women. On the other side of the room was another group of people who were also conversing amongst themselves, seemingly oblivious to the other group.


    This woman heard the stories, but she figured they¡¯d at least pretend to get along if they were going to risk their lives together. She shook her head and wondered if maybe this might be a bit too much for her. Her name was Taylor Falcone, and she was one of the world¡¯s few C-rank Dungeoneer scouts. In fact, some might say she¡¯s the best at scouting, as not only can she scout with fast-flying, bird-like familiars, but she also possesses the rare Cartography Skill which allows her to make accurate maps using the recorded routes and images from her familiars.


    As a ¡°perk¡± for all Dungeoneer scouts, they are permitted to participate in any Dungeons that they scout for. When they do, the other raiding Dungeoneers are expected to help the scout kill off some of the common monsters in the Dungeon in order to help raise their Stats and Skills. However, the B-rank Dungeons were much more difficult than the C-rank Dungeons and Taylor Falcone would be the first scout to enter one, assuming she doesn¡¯t drop out now.


    Taylor¡¯s initial confidence came from the fact that three B-rank Dungeoneers would be participating in this Dungeon raid. First, there was the pair from Prussia, Angela and Miel Tennenbaum. Miel only earned her B-rank certification recently, but Angela earned hers in the first week that the B-rank certification was created. With her unique Avenger Skill, Angela is sometimes considered the strongest Dungeoneer in Europe. These were the two women at the centre of the crowd behind Taylor.


    Then, there was the final B-rank Dungeoneer, Francesco Ricci. Francesco was a Dungeoneer who was severely injured in West Byzantine¡¯s first C-rank Dungeon. He was in a two-month long coma, and after waking up, it was as if he was a completely different person. He suddenly had four new Skills, and the media also often commented that his demeanour had changed completely. Despite being physically unable to walk, he can still move around and even fight at an extraordinary level using his Telekinesis and Divine Spear Mastery Skills. Currently, he is a part of the Roman Church¡¯s Holy Vanguard: an exclusive group of strong Dungeoneers that all possess healing, protection, or divine Skills. He and two other members of the HV were coming to the briefing room now.


    Taylor waited another moment before finally taking a seat near the back of the room. A few minutes later, the three SV members entered and an EA official at the front of the room began the briefing after they seated themselves. At the seat of each Dungeoneer was a folder that contained various documents for them to look at while the briefing went on. After the EA official went over the introductions, he went straight to the Dungeon outline.


    ¡°Thanks to Ms. Falcone¡¯s scouting, we have a fairly detailed map of this B-rank Dungeon. Please turn to page five. As you can see, this B-rank Dungeon is very unique in that it appears to be some sort of maze or labyrinth. The estimated total size of the labyrinth appears to be much smaller than the C-rank Dungeons, but in order to show all the currently mapped out routes, there are eight pages in total.¡±


    The EA official paused for a moment to allow the Dungeoneers to confirm that they were each provided with all eight pages. When nobody had any questions, he then continued.


    ¡°Throughout this labyrinth, Ms. Falcone¡¯s familiars only detected two monsters. Each one is humanoid in size and shape. They have a human-like upper body from the waist to the neck, and it has bovine-like legs. Its head is also similar to that of a bull. Due to the similarities, we shall refer to these monsters as minotaurs. Each minotaur appears to be naked except for something similar to a pleated leather skirt or kilt around their waist. They also each wield a large double axe.¡±


    The EA official paused again, just in case someone wanted to ask for more details or did not know what a minotaur was. Again, there were no questions.


    ¡°Although the labyrinth contains numerous dead ends, thanks to the excellent scouting Skill that Ms. Falcone possesses, she was able to find the route to the end of the labyrinth. This route, even if only done while walking, should only take about three hours. At the exit is a set of two giant stone doors. Unfortunately, Ms. Falcone¡¯s familiars had no means of passing through these doors so we do not know what lies behind them. Most likely, we believe that this is where the Dungeon Boss will be located, possibly along with many more monsters. Are there any questions so far?¡±


    The official was greeted with continued silence.


    ¡°Very well, I will now go further in the Dungeon¡¯s structure. First, although the entire labyrinth appears to be underground, it is relatively well-lit. A strange, indistinguishable light seems to shine down from the ceiling throughout the entire labyrinth. Second, the labyrinth is about three metres wide and three metres high, or ten feet. The two minotaurs seem to be patrolling certain sections of the labyrinth, and the estimated patrolling areas are highlighted on pages ten and eleven. Unfortunately, even after sending her familiars past the minotaurs, Ms. Falcone was unable to locate anything that resembled Empowering Stones. Another hypothesis we have come up with is that the Empowering Stones may be behind the sealed doors and that another path, or even possibly another labyrinth exists. If this happens to be the case, then we strongly recommend that the Dungeoneers return to the start of the labyrinth instead of continuing through uncharted territory. We will assume that complications have arisen if the Dungeon is not cleared within two days after you enter, and we will change the partial evacuation order to a full evacuation order.¡±


    The EA official stopped again, this time to drink some water. Only a few of the Dungeoneers were still flipping through the pages. This was because, by now, most veteran Dungeoneers had familiarized themselves with the Uniform Guidelines and pre-raid briefings were not only short, but seen as mere formalities, especially when top-level Dungeoneers were participating. Copies of the briefing documents were also provided beforehand to all Dungeoneers specifically invited to a Dungeon raid. And, if questions did come up, they usually weren¡¯t directed at EA staff, but towards other Dungeoneers, usually regarding the matter of splitting up monster kills.


    ¡°On the last page, you will find the summary of your expected compensation. The Dungeon raid is scheduled for tomorrow at 2:30pm, but please try to arrive at least ten minutes early. If you are no longer planning to participate in the Dungeon raid, please inform us as soon as possible before that time. I will remain here if there are any questions, however, the briefing is now concluded and you may leave at any time.¡±


    There were no questions and the Dungeoneers began to leave the room. They left not in a single file, but in groups, and Taylor, not wanting to be anywhere near a potential argument, decided to leave at the end. However, when it was down to the last two Dungeoneers, the other spoke to her.


    ¡°Ms. Falcone? Is that right?¡± Taylor locked up for a second. She stared back at Francesco briefly before answering him.


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡±


    ¡°Would you mind speaking with me for a few moments? Alone.¡± Taylor instantly thought back to an article detailing Francesco¡¯s past. Specifically, it was about his past as a bodyguard for VIPs where he would often meet up with women even while on the job. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°I wanted to learn more about your scouting of the Dungeon.¡± Taylor didn¡¯t think it sounded like an excuse to disguise the fact that he was just trying to pick her up. Although, Taylor didn¡¯t have enough experience in that department to think this was an accurate judgement. However, the important findings were already in the report.


    ¡°Just read through the report. If there¡¯s something you don¡¯t understand, you can ask the EA staff.¡± Taylor was feeling a little proud about how she dealt with the situation as she started to walk past him.


    From behind her, Taylor could hear the sound of clinking metal. Francesco was following from behind, but he didn¡¯t say anything and he was keeping a moderate amount of distance apart. Francesco continued to follow her out of the room and then all the way to the hotel elevator. All along the way, there was the soft sound of clinking metal as Francesco took each measured step behind her to maintain his following distance. Finally, Taylor broke the silence.


    ¡°What?¡± Taylor asked, with some annoyance.


    ¡°I wish to speak to you about your scouting. Personally.¡± Taylor started to think that she misunderstood his intent, but she also wanted to be away from him even more now. The serious, cool voice he spoke with was concerning.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t.¡± Taylor pressed for the elevator as Francesco continued to awkwardly stand a little ways away. When the elevator doors finally opened, Taylor quickly went in, and unsurprisingly, Francesco followed, this time closing the distance significantly. Taylor pressed for her floor, and Francesco just continued to stand there.


    After her continued stares, Taylor seemed to remember why he looked so strange whenever he stood. Francesco could no longer walk, so he used his Telekinesis Skill to move around, but it is very taxing to finely control all the movements in the legs all the time. To help with this, metal bracers were linked up all along his legs and were connected by metal wires that ran all the way up his spine and up to his shoulders. This is so he could focus on using his Skill on just the metal bracers, and the connected pads on his shoulders to keep his body upright. And, if he just wanted to appear standing, he only needed to keep the pads on his shoulders at a certain position. However, it does look very unnatural to anyone looking closely, even if they can''t see any of the metal underneath his cassock.


    The elevator went to Taylor¡¯s floor and after she left the elevator, Francesco continued to follow. Taylor said nothing about this and just quickly went to her room. When she was almost there, Francesco was still behind her.


    ¡°Just stop following me,¡± Taylor said fiercely, while also keeping her voice down to avoid shouting.


    ¡°I need to speak with you about your scouting.¡± Francesco sounded even more serious now than ever. Taylor looked like she was about to scream at him, but she held it in. However, her irritation was clearly showing on her face.


    ¡°Okay, fine, what did you want to ask about?¡± she responded, partially gritting her teeth.


    ¡°During your scouting of the labyrinth, did you see any inscriptions on any of the walls?¡±


    ¡°No, I did see anything written on the walls.¡±


    ¡°Not writing, inscriptions. For example, symbols or brands.¡±


    ¡°No, I meant that as well. The walls had none of that. They were all smooth stone walls.¡±


    ¡°What about the minotaurs? Did they have anything inscribed on their bodies or weapons?¡±


    ¡°What?¡± Taylor¡¯s anger briefly subsided and was replaced with confusion. ¡°Writing on the minotaurs? No¡­I don¡¯t think so.¡±


    ¡°And the weapons, too? They had no inscriptions.¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­I don¡¯t think so.¡±


    ¡°Think back carefully. Nothing on the shaft or the axe heads?¡± Francesco¡¯s voice was at a consistent cadence, but perhaps because of her lessened irritation, Taylor was considering his questions much more seriously now.


    ¡°Um¡­no, I don¡¯t think there were any inscriptions. No discernible markings.¡±


    ¡°And, what about the doors at the end of the labyrinth?¡±


    ¡°They had some patterns on them, but I don¡¯t think I saw any writing.¡±


    ¡°What did the patterns look like?¡±


    ¡°Um¡­I don¡¯t really remember.¡±


    ¡°Try to describe them to me.¡±


    ¡°Why? Do you know how to read the patterns?¡± Taylor asked, feeling a bit irritated again about the stream of questions.


    ¡°...Just to make sure we end up at the right door.¡± Taylor couldn¡¯t tell at all from Francesco¡¯s tone, expression, or posture if that was a genuine answer. Taylor sighed. She held up one arm, and then brought her other arm out just above it. She did some quick movements with the higher hand over the lower hand, and a falcon suddenly appeared, perched on her arm. Francesco didn¡¯t flinch at all when this happened. Then, Taylor put her hand over the falcon¡¯s head and her whole body froze up for a few seconds. Her eyes looked like she was in a trance. Then, she did another motion with her free hand and the falcon disappeared. She pulled a notepad out of her Inventory and started sketching.


    ¡°Here,¡± she said, after completing her sketch. ¡°The door¡¯s pattern looked like this.¡± Francesco took a brief look, but made no other discernible movements. ¡°Happy now?¡±


    ¡°May I have this sketch?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Yeah, sure.¡± She ripped out a page from her notepad and gave it to him.


    ¡°Thank you.¡± Then, he turned around and walked away. Taylor looked incredulous at the sudden departure, and almost reflexively called him back. Taylor sighed to herself again and went to her room.


    ****


    Francesco returned to his hotel room, which he shared with the bespectacled HV member.


    ¡°Anything happen?¡± he asked. Francesco did not respond and lay down on his bed, the weight of his body and metal attachments creating a loud thump. ¡°Okay, fine, just lie there. But, listen up, because the raiding plan has changed a bit now. Assuming no further changes to the raiding party, there will be a total of twenty-nine Dungeoneers participating, including the three of us. There are also going to be seventeen Dungeoneers from Prussia, and eight Dungeoneers from East Prussia. The last Dungeoneer is the scout, Taylor Falcone. Do you understand where I¡¯m going with this?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Riccardo, you¡¯ve already brought up that the East Prusssian Dungeoneers don¡¯t get along with the Prussian ones,¡± Francesco answered, still lying on the bed.


    ¡°That¡¯s right. Whether this is justified by one side or the other is irrelevant. As agents of the Roman Church, we must maintain our stance of neutrality between nations. If a fight breaks out, we can intervene to deescalate the situation, but as long as it doesn¡¯t get to that point, stay out of it. And, if the two sides want to split up at some point during the Dungeon raid, then there are three different priorities we must follow, regardless of whomever may be at fault for the division. First, we must take an action that makes it possible to clear the Dungeon. Second, if there are multiple different actions that make clearing the Dungeon possible, then we must accompany the scout, Taylor Falcone. The Roman Church views the Dungeoneer scouts as essential for future Dungeon raids for the world at large, and specifically wishes for us to create a positive impression with Ms. Falcone in order to build up a good relationship. Understood?¡±


    ¡°...yes.¡± Riccardo walked over to Francesco¡¯s bed and leaned over him.


    ¡°What was with that pause?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m tired.¡±


    ¡°What did you do when you told me and Francis to leave ahead of you?¡±


    ¡°I had some questions to ask.¡±


    ¡°What did you ask?¡± Riccardo pressed further.


    ¡°Nothing you need to worry about. Continue. What is the third priority?¡±


    ¡°Francesco, it was fine for you to do whatever you wanted in the C-rank Dungeons, but this time it¡¯s different. If you have intentions to deviate from the plans-¡±


    ¡°Where is Francis, by the way? Shouldn¡¯t he be here as well?¡±


    ¡°He already knows.¡±


    ¡°Okay. Continue then.¡± Riccardo leered at Francesco a moment longer before dropping the matter.


    ¡°The third priority is about what to do if we are limited in our ability to assist anyone in the Dungeon. In that case, we will prioritize the following people in the following order, from highest priority to lowest priority. You will take the highest priority. Then, it is Taylor Falcone. After that is me. After me is Angela Tannenbaum. After her is Miel Tannenbaum. After that is everyone else, so it will be up to our discretion.¡±


    ¡°What about Francis?¡±


    ¡°He is in the same category as all the other unnamed Dungeoneers.¡± There wasn¡¯t an ounce of hesitation in Riccardo¡¯s response.


    ¡°...Does he know that?¡±


    ¡°He knows. I should also add that although he is in the same category, you should keep in mind the Roman Church¡¯s reputation when making your decision. It would do us no good if our actions were seen as selfish.¡±


    ¡°Do you think I care about something like that?¡± Francesco replied with an even voice. Riccardo seemed to ponder the question for a bit before walking away to sit on his own bed.


    ¡°There is one last thing to go over,¡± Riccardo began, ignoring Francesco¡¯s question. ¡°When a scout joins the raid, it means the other Dungeoneers have to assist her in slaying monsters. Normally, this is just for the common monsters, but since there are only two minotaurs, they are probably both mid-bosses. Unless some other monsters appear before then, then we would need to help her fight against at least one of the minotaurs.¡±


    ¡°That won¡¯t be a problem. I can even let her get the kill if she wants.¡±


    ¡°No, that¡¯s not the issue. It is likely that the other Dungeoneers may also want to fight against the minotaur since mid-bosses grant more Stat Points and also have a higher chance of leveling up Skills. However, the Dungeon will be quite narrow, making it impractical for many Dungeoneers to fight it at once.¡±


    ¡°I know that. What¡¯s your point? Do you want to negotiate with the other Dungeoneers?¡±


    ¡°That would be ideal. Normally, the higher ranked Dungeoneers act as the vanguard, which means we would deal with one mid-boss while the two Tannenbaums deal with the second. However, the rest of the Prussian Dungeoneers certainly won¡¯t like that.¡±


    ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan, then?¡±


    ¡°Before we reach the first minotaur, we must get the rest of the raiding team to agree to us fighting the first minotaur. Realistically, the only way to get everyone else to agree is if Ms. Falcone is the one who decides. This whole matter is all about providing suitable support for her to begin with, so if she is the one who makes the decision, then the other Dungeoneers won¡¯t be able to complain about us.¡±


    ¡°Okay, but, how are we going to do that?¡±


    ¡°Well, it would do us no good if we were to try to openly convince her, and it would look even worse if we tried to do it secretly.¡±


    ¡°So, then how?¡± Francesco didn¡¯t let it show in his voice, but he was starting to get annoyed.


    ¡°You have a thing with the ladies, don¡¯t you? Do you think you can catch her eye without making it too obvious?¡±


    ¡°...I might have some bad news for you.¡± Francesco kept his voice neutral as he started formulating some excuses in his head.

 Sorcerers Labyrinth (Part 2)

    Date: March 21? 2021 - 2:45 pm?


    Location: East Prussia? (B-rank Dungeon)


    The twenty-nine Dungeoneers all showed up the next day and entered the B-rank Dungeon together. After some discussion, the group agreed on the general order of travelling once inside the Dungeon. At the front of the labyrinth would be Angela and Miel. At least one B-rank Dungeoneer needed to form the vanguard, and despite the Holy Vanguard¡¯s namesake, they were at the back in order to maximize the level of protection for Taylor. Behind the two B-rank vanguards were the East Prussian C-rank Dungeoneers, and then the Prussian C-rank Dungeoneers. Without any use of smooth-talking (which likely would not have worked), Francesco was at the back with Taylor and the rest of the Holy Vanguard.


    The group travelled in a relatively relaxed manner. There weren¡¯t going to be any monster encounters for quite some time and there was no unnecessary mixing of Prussian and East Prussian Dungeoneers to increase tensions. Neither side was completely silent about their disdain for the other side as they talked to the fellow compatriots, but they at least did not devolve into arguments.


    Thankfully, Angela and Miel as the two vanguards was acceptable for everyone since they were fine with being in the lead, the East Prussians actually liked them due to past raiding with them, and the Prussians, although not a fan of either of the two, still viewed this as the Prussians leading the group. Lastly, the Holy Vanguard took this as an opportunity to get along better with Taylor. Well, Riccardo, at least, tried. After a few attempts at small talk, the group at the back travelled in silence for a bit until Taylor suddenly asked Francesco a question.


    ¡°So, what do you think will be behind the doors?¡± Taylor asked the question with a somewhat low voice, not wanting to attract attention from the Dungeoneers ahead of them.


    ¡°Nothing that you should concern yourself with,¡± Francesco replied. Taylor, unsurprisingly, was not satisfied with that answer.


    ¡°If it¡¯s something dangerous, you have to tell me.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s something that won¡¯t be any issue for you.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to be mean?!¡± Taylor involuntarily raised her voice and a couple of the Prussian Dungeoneers looked back. She quickly put on a smile and waved at the two of them. ¡°Sorry, just a bit nervous since this is the first B-rank Dungeon for me.¡± She ended it with a laugh and the two of them smiled back.


    ¡°Not to worry, Frau Falcone, with us here, your safety is guaranteed.¡±


    ¡°Thanks.¡± Taylor beamed at them until they turned around again.


    ¡°You¡¯re a strange one,¡± Francesco commented. Taylor glared at him slightly, which was enough to finally make it apparent to Riccardo the lack of goodwill she had towards him.


    ¡°Ah, Miss Falcone, I hope you can please forgive my friend. He has no way with words, but even so, he normally is not like this.¡± Riccardo shot a look at Francesco, prompting him to apologize. He did not. Taylor ignored Riccardo and moved in closer to Francesco.


    ¡°Do you know something that even those two don¡¯t know?¡± she asked, in almost a whisper.


    ¡°Of course. It¡¯s not like they know every meal I¡¯ve ever had.¡± Taylor wasn¡¯t the least bit amused by the joke.


    ¡°Even if you¡¯re a B-rank Dungeoneer, do you really think you should be acting like this?¡± she asked.


    ¡°It won¡¯t affect my ability to clear this Dungeon, so I don¡¯t see any issues.¡±


    ¡°Are you saying that if it came down to it, you could clear this Dungeon all by yourself?¡±


    ¡°Yes. In fact, it might be better in that case.¡± Taylor was surprised. This level of arrogance was not surprising, given the prior conversations and the reports about his past, but the sincerity in his voice seemed to suggest that he was actually concerned about the rest of the Dungeoneers. ¡°Oh, but I do think your map is excellent. This Dungeon raid would have definitely taken a lot longer without it.¡± The sudden compliment surprised Taylor even further, and she was left speechless for a moment.


    ¡°...Thanks.¡± Francesco looked at her blankly for a second.


    ¡°Thanks for what?¡± he asked, not understanding her belated response.


    After another hour of travelling, Taylor called out from behind for the party to stop. They would soon be approaching the patrol range of the first minotaur so it was finally time to settle the matter of who would fight the minotaur. As Riccardo had predicted, after a few minutes of arguing, the party decided to leave the decision to Taylor.


    After some consideration, Taylor decided on the following plan. Miel and Angela would fight the minotaur head-on. Taylor would be behind them, a relatively safe distance away, and she would provide aid using her falcon familiar to distract her and attack his head when possible. Next to Taylor would be the Holy Vanguard who are principally there to act as bodyguards. However, if necessary, Francesco and Francis can move forward to assist or to block attacks aimed at Taylor. Riccardo will stay in the back unless someone gets injured. In that case, he will move forward to heal them. Some of the Prussian Dungeoneers were unable to hide their dissatisfaction with Taylor¡¯s decision, but they did not openly voice their dissent.


    They proceeded as Taylor decided and after about another five minutes of walking, the first minotaur appeared, walking into their view from another path. It stared at them for a second, seeming to consider its next course of action. Miel did not want to wait around and moved first, followed immediately after by Angela. A bit delayed, Taylor sent out her familiar to assist.


    The minotaur slashed horizontally with its axe and Miel dodged low. Angela, on the other hand, braced against the attack before the swing completed. She grabbed at the axe¡¯s handle with her hands and seemed to wrestle with the minotaur for control of the weapon. As she did this, Miel didn¡¯t miss a beat and attacked the minotaur in the back of its knees. The minotaur buckled just as the falcon arrived to swoop in at its face. The falcon slashed at one of the minotaur¡¯s eyes as Angela completely forced the minotaur onto its knees by dragging down its axe.


    Miel used her Skill to claw at the minotaur¡¯s back with her bare hands. With an invisible enchantment, her fingers cut through like talons shredding through a slab of meat and the minotaur finally let go of its axe. With the stolen axe, Angela slashed at the minotaur. She intentionally held back from using her full power, but the blade easily cut through its shoulder and along its chest. Black blood sprayed out from the massive slash as the minotaur keeled over. Then, Angela used the axe to cut off the minotaur¡¯s arms, one after the other. The minotaur howled out in extreme pain as the stone-faced Dungeoneers proceeded in the subjugation.


    Angela then dropped the axe and grabbed the minotaur by the horns. She dragged it along for a bit and laid it out onto the ground, face down. Taylor came over, retrieving the minotaur¡¯s axe when she arrived. Angela looked over at her, hands still firmly on the minotaur¡¯s horns to make sure the armless monster could not suddenly attack. Taylor prepared to finish off the minotaur with its own weapon. Due to her lack of Strength, it still took two hacks at the neck before the monster finally died.


    The minotaur¡¯s body and axe both turned into black mist and the Dungeoneers¡¯ bodies and clothes were spotless once more. Then, shortly afterward, the three of them received an update about defeating a B-rank Dungeon mid-boss.


    Just a little bit further ahead, was the second minotaur. Upon confirmation that they were mid-bosses and not normal monsters, there was no longer a strict obligation to give Taylor the final blow. However, since the Holy Vanguard were to take the lead this time, Riccardo, on the others¡¯ behalf, still invited her to support them. As a matter of saving face, two C-ranks each from the Prussian and East Prussian sides were to act as additional support while Miel and Angela sat out this time.


    ¡°Remember, you can¡¯t kill it,¡± Riccardo said to Francesco as he walked ahead of the rest. ¡°Just in case you can¡¯t hold back enough, at least wait for Miss Falcone¡¯s familiar to attack it first.¡± Francesco said nothing as he continued to walk past him and towards the second minotaur who had just appeared from another path less than fifty feet away.


    The minotaur leered at Francesco. There was no way to say for certain, but it seemed to know that its comrade had already been defeated. It tightly gripped its axe and cautiously approached Francesco. The two continued to walk towards one another, with Francesco¡¯s walking looking especially awkward with his spear in both hands. Perhaps due to this, the minotaur''s gaze shifted and focused more on the falcon that suddenly flew at it.


    The instant the minotaur looked away, Francesco suddenly charged forward with surprising speed. On top of the high speed, he also ran with a high level of dexterity. It wasn¡¯t just at the level of someone who can walk on their own, he ran with the movements of a highly skilled warrior. The surprised minotaur tried to attack Francesco, but he easily evaded and thrust his spear through both of the minotaur¡¯s arms. It let go of its weapon, and Francesco pulled back along with his spear as the weapon started to fall. Then, before the weapon hit the ground, with an effortless twirl of his spear, he sliced off one of the minotaur¡¯s arms. Along with dexterous footwork, he connected one spin into another and slashed off another arm. Then, he sliced through both of the minotaur¡¯s legs, cutting them below the knee. Francesco casually stepped back, giving space for the minotaur to fall forward onto the ground, with no ability to break its fall.


    Lastly, Francesco stabbed his spear through the minotaur¡¯s side, pinning it to the ground. Taylor walked over to them, clearly surprised by his performance.


    ¡°The rumours don¡¯t do you justice,¡± she commented when she reached his position.


    ¡°Please kill it quickly. It takes a lot of effort to use my Telekinesis Skill at its highest effectiveness for too long.¡± Taylor was a little annoyed by the comment, but refrained from being spiteful. She quickly picked up the minotaur¡¯s axe and finished it off. The Prussian Dungeoneers who were meant to act as support were disappointed with how quickly the battle was settled but said nothing. The rest of the Dungeoneers started to advance as the black mist of the former minotaur started to fade. Just as they were about to reach Francesco and Taylor, Francesco spoke.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    ¡°Before we continue, I would like to make a suggestion.¡±


    ¡°What kind of suggestion?¡± Taylor asked, noting that even Riccardo seemed surprised.


    ¡°Since we have confirmed that these minotaurs are mid-bosses, I think we should look for the Empowering Stones before going any further. We may also want to go back to the patrol path of the first minotaur to search as well.¡± It was a sensible suggestion. From the other B-rank Dungeons that were cleared so far, although few in number, all of them had Empowering Stones that were nearby the mid-bosses. However, this labyrinth was also unique in that a single regular monster was yet to appear. Although the information from other Dungeons so far was something to consider, it was also dangerous to make sweeping assumptions. For example, very recently, the first underwater Dungeon Outbreak occurred.


    ¡°Are you suggesting that the Empowering Stones are invisible or hidden in some kind of way? Or, are you suggesting this for some other reason?¡± Taylor asked. Despite the sensibility of Francesco¡¯s suggestion, there was another reason why it was dismissed earlier. Taylor scouted the labyrinth with her familiars and mapped every single path. To suggest that there were Empowering Stones that were not noted on her map would have implied that her scouting was incomplete or incompetent. This was an insinuation that no nation nor the EA would ever make lightly.


    ¡°In absolutely no way is Francesco questioning your amazing capabilities, Miss Falcone,¡± Riccardo suddenly cut in. He then went right up to Francesco and tried to pull him away. He didn¡¯t budge, so Riccardo just whispered in his ear instead. ¡°What do you think you are doing? Don¡¯t you remember the priorities?¡±


    ¡°I think it would be better to be safe. The patrol paths of the minotaurs aren¡¯t too long, so it shouldn¡¯t take much time to check them over again.¡±


    ¡°It might not take too long to retrace their path, but would you be satisfied with just going over it just once? How many times do you plan to walk back and forth until your search is complete? We do not have all the time to waste. We need to know what is behind the doors at the end, first.¡± This was said by one of the Prussian Dungeoneers.


    ¡°If that¡¯s how you think about it, then I don¡¯t mind just checking it over by myself.¡± Francesco¡¯s response noticeably irritated a few more Dungeoneers.


    ¡°Oh, so you¡¯re just planning to free-ride this Dungeon?!¡± one of the East Prussian Dungeoneers asked angrily. After the creation of the Dungeoneer ranks, the compensation system was changed to reflect a larger share of the Dungeon drops going to higher ranked Dungeoneers. It varied a bit from country to country, but at a minimum, higher ranked Dungeoneers were receiving at least three times as much as lower ranked Dungeoneers. This was, in fact, a compromise by the higher ranked Dungeoneers since they were essential to defeating the Dungeon Bosses. It would be a different matter, however, if a higher ranked Dungeoneer simply wasn¡¯t present during the Boss battle at all.


    ¡°I don¡¯t intend to take any share of the Boss drops if you happen to fight it.¡± If any of his former party members from the first C-rank Dungeon were here to hear this, they¡¯d insist that this was someone completely different. This was not the case, of course, and instead of bewilderment, there was only increasing tension from Francesco¡¯s nonchalant remarks. Although, certain Dungeoneers, such as Angela and Miel just looked on calmly, quietly whispering to themselves.


    Francesco seemed to stop caring about the situation he had caused, and after deciding he wouldn¡¯t be able to convince everyone, he just started walking away, down the patrol path of the second minotaur. Several Dungeoneers, of course, started shouting at him as he started to leave, but then Taylor suddenly drowned them out after summoning another familiar and having them both screech. Several Dungeoneers reflexively covered their ears, and even Francesco stopped in his tracks.


    ¡°Everyone, I want us all to remember that clearing this Dungeon is not the number one priority.¡± Most of the Dungeoneers looked at her in shock. ¡°If it can be cleared, then fine. However, the real purpose is to investigate this Dungeon to add on to the world¡¯s knowledge about Dungeons. This is to not only help in clearing future Dungeons, but to assess the approximate threat that the current Dungeon poses if there is an Outbreak.¡± Most of the Dungeoneers looked at Taylor, in either shocked or confused silence. This sounded just like the kind of spiel the EA officials always go on about, and having had to meet with so many of them in the past year and listen to them, these phrases had an unusual calming effect for veteran Dungeoneers.


    ¡°Okay, so what should we do now, then?¡± Miel asked, one of the few veteran Dungeoneers that had a more antagonistic relationship with certain EA officials.


    ¡°Normally, I would propose a vote, but I can tell that certain individuals would not be swayed by a majority opinion. So, instead, I think it may be better to split up, at least for now.¡± Now, that was not a very EA-like thing to say, given their constant emphasis on cooperation. Taylor continued speaking, already seeing that some looked ready to voice their opposition. ¡°Please remember the Earth Alliance instructions. Our priority is survival, both personally, and for the people who would be endangered by an Outbreak. If there is another labyrinth behind those doors, we would not risk getting lost or getting caught in some kind of trap or ambush. We would return to the entrance and I would send one of my familiars through the portal, alerting everyone outside that we will not be clearing the Dungeon.¡±


    A few Dungeoneers nodded along, including Riccardo.


    ¡°Also, if the Boss is behind those doors, then double checking for hidden Empowering Stones would be helpful just in case they are not behind those doors.¡± Several more Dungeoneers seemed convinced and the situation settled down. The prideful Prussian C-ranks elected to continue onward, and the East Prussians followed, not wanting to be called cowards by the hated rivals. Surprisingly for most, Taylor chose to scout the paths, along with three Holy Vanguard members. Miel and Angela were the last two to decide, but after certain remarks made by both the Prussian and East Prussian sides, they decided to go forward as well, although Miel looked reluctant to make such a decision.


    After splitting up, the forward group encountered no obstacles until reaching the stone double doors. Their surfaces were smooth, with the exception of seven indentations that seemed to form a circular pattern across the two doors. Nobody seemed sure about what this could mean, but several noticed how the indentation that was furthest to the left appeared to just be a circle, whereas the other indentations seemed to be portions of a circle.


    One of the Dungeoneers tried touching the indentations, and surprisingly, right when his hand pressed against the stone, the doors began to slowly open outwards, causing the Dungeoneer to quickly jump back. Peering inside, they could see a path that continues on a slight decline. On either side of the path were torches similar to the ones found in the D-rank Dungeon cave. A few of the East Prussian Dungeoneers looked at Miel and Angela expectantly.


    ¡°Should we check it out?¡± one of them asked. There was no update from the scouting side, nor was there an update about any Empowering Stones being destroyed.


    ¡°We should wait,¡± Miel responded. She was confident in her strength and even more confident in Angela, but she saw no reason to rush. A Boss fight has never lasted more than a few hours, so there was plenty of time to spare before considering challenging what may lie down this path.


    ¡°To think that every B-rank in this party would get cold feet. I am surprised to see that the Earth Alliance considers cowardice to be a qualification for ranking up.¡± Miel was annoyed by the Prussian Dungeoneer¡¯s goading, but didn¡¯t think it was worth responding to. ¡°It looks like it is up to true Prussians of noble heritage to clear this Dungeon.¡± The other Prussian Dungeoneers heartily agreed.


    ¡°Yes, Herr Schumann, let us advance.¡± Alright, go ahead and get yourselves killed, you chauvinistic pigs, Miel thought. ¡°The frauleins can remain in the back.¡± This remark easily incensed the East Prussian Dungeoneers who collectively agreed to advance forward as well.


    ¡°Come, we must not let these bastards underestimate us!¡±


    ¡°Just ignore them, if they actually had to encounter the B-rank Boss at its empowered state, a group of just C-ranks wouldn¡¯t stand a chance.¡±


    ¡°But, I heard that a few of them were set to be promoted to B-rank soon!¡± Miel also heard that rumour, but didn¡¯t believe it. It started going around just after she received her promotion, so she figured someone on their side just started circulating it to try to keep their pride intact.


    ¡°We can go in either after the rest of them get back here or after the Empowering Stones are destroyed.¡±


    ¡°See you soon!¡± one of the Prussian Dungeoneers called out after they all passed by the open doors.


    ¡°Jakub, let¡¯s go!¡± one of the East Prussian Dungeoneers called out to Jakub, who was still trying to convince Miel and Angela.


    ¡°Coming!¡± he called back after turning around. Then, he looked back at the two women. ¡°We know you¡¯re not like the rest of those bastards. You can¡¯t just let them get any advantage over you.¡±


    ¡°Like I said, without us, they won¡¯t be able to do it anyways. Don¡¯t throw your lives away, just stay here.¡±


    ¡°But, if they defeat the boss, we will have to live on in shame.¡±


    ¡°They won¡¯t beat it.¡±


    ¡°Then we will also be shamed for not fighting.¡± Miel was close to getting fed up with his stubbornness. Actually, she was fed up. She was fed up with the pridefulness of both the East Prussian Dungeoneers and the other Prussian counterparts. She was fed up with this useless pride that all these men insist upon for the purpose of putting down others. A hateful pride, similar to what most men she knew used when belittling both her and her sister, Angela.


    ¡°Then go ahead and die with them.¡± Miel¡¯s response was fierce, matching her expression. Miel thought better of the East Prussians, since despite their initial prejudice, she found them to be trustworthy companions. She also thought they could be very useful down the road for her future plans, but if they were going to get like this every time other Prussians get involved, then they simply weren¡¯t worth dealing with anymore.


    ¡°Miel, are you sure we should stay behind?¡± Angela asked her, seeming to notice some pained thoughts running through her mind. The stunned Jakub finally recovered himself.


    ¡°I apologize if I offended you. However, this is something we must do. I won¡¯t ask you to change your mind again.¡± Jakub turned around and left, disappointment on his face. After they reached the entrance, Angela asked Miel another question.


    ¡°How about I go ahead with them by myself?¡±


    ¡°What? What are you talking about?¡± Miel asked, genuinely confused.


    ¡°It¡¯s just to make sure that we can save some of them. I don¡¯t think you want them all to die.¡±


    ¡°I-¡± Miel quickly stopped herself to take a moment to think properly. ¡°This was their choice. I don¡¯t see why you should have to risk your life to save any of them if they weren¡¯t going to give us their due consideration.¡±


    ¡°...I can handle myself.¡± Angela had to pause for a bit to digest Miel¡¯s words. Failing that, she just responded to the part she did understand. However, just that much was still enough to make Miel reconsider.


    ¡°Okay, we can go in, but our goal isn¡¯t to fight the Boss if it¡¯s there. At most, we¡¯ll drag back a couple of them and retreat, okay?¡± Angela nodded in agreement. The two then followed the rest, catching up with the East Prussians shortly afterward, who were very pleased that they changed their minds. After that, they soon caught up with the rest of the Prussians who had a few snide remarks prepared.


    The group continued down the path for about another minute before reaching a large, circular chamber. It was similar in size to the D-rank Dungeon Boss room, but instead of the mysterious lighted ceiling, it was a dark, stone ceiling that was about twenty feet high. The only light sources in the room were a pair of torches on the far side of the chamber, which illuminated a stone platform that was about a foot above the rest of the floor. On that stone platform was a golden, jewel-encrusted chest.


    ¡°This really is starting to feel more like a Dungeon now,¡± one of the East Prussian Dungeoneers remarked aloud. ¡°There¡¯s even a treasure chest now.¡±


    ¡°Do you think the Boss is inside the chest?¡± another East Prussian Dungeoneer asked.


    ¡°Maybe the chest is the Boss?¡± a different person asked. As the East Prussian Dungeoneers debate, the C-rank Prussian Dungeoneers boldly advanced, expecting to find Rare, or even Super Rare artifacts inside the chest.


    ¡°Hey, stop right there,¡± Miel called out, having a bad feeling about the situation. As far as she could see, there were no other paths leading out of this chamber and they still haven¡¯t encountered any other monsters.


    The Prussian Dungeoneers ignored her and the East Prussian Dungeoneers also started advancing, while continuing their discussion.


    ¡°Maybe this is a treasure Dungeon? That could be the reason why it¡¯s so unique. The real challenge is navigating through the labyrinth, and the drops that would come from the Boss are inside the chest.¡±


    ¡°That would be really lucky, then.¡±


    ¡°Hold on, guys, it could still be a mimic. We should get ready to fight the treasure chest just in case.¡±


    ¡°A what?¡±


    ¡°A mimic. Haven¡¯t you ever played rpgs?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve played P*****m. Does that count?¡±


    The Prussian Dungeoneers finally reached the stone platform, but before they could take a step further, Miel stood in front of them, with Angela rushing to her side.


    ¡°Stop, do not touch the treasure chest!¡±


    ¡°Oh, now that there is no danger, the fraulein wants to keep all the rewards to herself?¡±


    ¡°Oh, just shut up. Even assuming that this is a real treasure chest, we shouldn¡¯t open it until the rest of the party is here.¡±


    ¡°Why? To reward them for doing nothing other than wasting time? They haven¡¯t found any Empowering Stones because there aren¡¯t any. It should have been obvious that this was a special Dungeon.¡± Herr Schumann took a step towards Miel.


    ¡°If that is really the case, then we have to at least wait for the scout. If it weren¡¯t for her, we would have gotten lost in the labyrinth.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯ll get what she is owed.¡± Herr Schumann looked back at the others. ¡°We all know to make sure that Frau Falcone receives her entitlement, correct?¡± The others loudly agreed. ¡°See, unlike some people, we recognize when good work should be rewarded. Now, instead of wasting time standing around as those Roman Church soldiers waste more time on a fruitless search, let us retrieve the items here so we can clear the Dungeon and head back home.¡± He stepped past Miel and onto the stone platform. Angela looked at Miel, silently asking for the next move. Miel observed that several of the Prussian Dungoneers had various weapons at the ready and were eyeing Miel¡¯s actions. If Miel tried to physically obstruct them, she knew a fight could break out, and if this really happened to be just a treasure chest, there would be a lot of damage to both her reputation and Angela¡¯s.


    ¡°I just want it to be on record that I still think we should wait.¡± Miel backed off, as did Angela. The Prussian Dungeoneers snickered or laughed to themselves when the two women retreated. The East Prussian Dungeoneers, on the other hand, took Miel¡¯s words more seriously and got ready in case a Boss battle suddenly began.


    Herr Schumann approached the treasure chest and ran his hands over the encrusted jewels. Nothing happened, and he laughed to himself. Then, he pulled down the latches of the chest. Again, nothing happened, and the other Prussian smiled or laughed. Finally, he opened up the chest, and the torches were suddenly snuffed out. While in total darkness, the chamber shook as a stone block suddenly fell down, sealing off the entrance. Then, there was the sound of cracking stone as the ceiling collapsed on top of the party.

 Sorcerers Labyrinth (Part 3)

    Taylor watched Francesco very carefully, mostly ignoring Riccardo¡¯s attempts to engage in casual conversation. Francesco said he wanted to stay back to examine the area around where they fought the minotaurs, but she suspected there was more to it than just that. However, for nearly an hour, that¡¯s exactly what he did. Starting back from where they fought the first one, he slowly went down the other branching paths and carefully looked at the walls, oftentimes tapping against the walls with the tip of his spear.


    He continued this behaviour for every other path from where they fought the first minotaur, and then, eventually, he seemed satisfied with this area and backtracked so as to continue the search in the area where they fought the second minotaur. He then repeated his behaviour with those alternate paths as well.


    Just as Taylor started thinking that maybe she had misunderstood him and that he was just some overly paranoid Dungeoneer, he suddenly paused right after tapping on another part of the wall. He took a step back, looked it up and down, and then suddenly thrust his spear into the wall. His spear penetrated the wall, and black blood gushed out of the hole. Then, a segment of the wall, about ten feet high and ten feet across, suddenly disappeared into a mass of thick, mist-like vapour. When it cleared, another path, one not marked on the map, was revealed.


    ¡°H- how did you know? What even was that? Are the walls monsters?!¡± Taylor started looking around in a panic as Riccardo and Francis also suddenly became much more tense.


    ¡°No. Well, technically, yes.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean?!¡± Taylor asked, not the least bit satisfied with his response.


    ¡°Francesco, please explain the situation to us right now,¡± Riccardo said as a sort of half-order. Francesco paused for a bit as he scanned ahead of them, looking down the new path.


    ¡°Let¡¯s keep going.¡± Francesco had apparently decided that it wasn¡¯t worth elaborating. However, both Taylor and Riccardo grabbed him before he started down the new path. Francis remained at the back.


    ¡°Enough! Tell me what¡¯s going on!¡± Taylor demanded.


    Francesco, I won¡¯t ask you to go into all the details, but at least tell me what you are going to do next,¡± Riccardo requested.


    ¡°Okay¡­¡± It seemed like Francesco was about to explain everything, but instead, he just took a really long pause as he sorted out the information in his own head. How did he know anything about this labyrinth? Well, it was simply because he has encountered several of them before. He encountered different types of labyrinths, and one of them was exactly like the one they are in now.


    The living labyrinth. The name that was given to these artificial dungeons created by the Sorcerer God and his followers. In particular, this was the least threatening of the labyrinths, as it was originally designed as a tutorial labyrinth. Not a tutorial for the residents of Allenven, but for those who wished to join the ranks of the various gods of the Pantheon, including, of course, joining the Sorcerer God. A lone challenger would navigate through the labyrinth, and if they reached the end goal in a set amount of time, they would be given the opportunity of serving one of the Gods of the Pantheon.


    However, that seems quite different from how this current labyrinth is, though? Well, they were tutorial labyrinths for challengers, but for anyone else, the labyrinth would redesign itself. Using golems that took on the appearance of walls, they could change the pathways and even create pits and other traps. For the soldiers and knights of Allenven, it was better to simply not even enter these tutorial labyrinths since they did not contain anything worthwhile. However, there was still a need to clear them out for two reasons. One, it was to prevent others from being tempted to challenge the trials and then serve the Gods that they were at war with. Two, from the outside, they were nearly indistinguishable from other labyrinths that did actually serve as fortresses for the Gods¡¯ followers.


    But still, how did Francesco know that this was a tutorial labyrinth even before he entered it, as opposed to the other types. He could not be completely sure, but there were three reasons that made him almost certain of his assumption. One, the monsters inside the labyrinth were minotaurs. In particular, they were minotaurs that did not possess engraved weapons. Speaking from personal experience of his past life, there were never any fortress labyrinths that would use such weak monsters as guards. Two, the engravings on the final door. Francesco knew that the engraving represented the phases of the moon. This was not a mark for the Sorcerer God himself, but one of his Apostles. From what he knew, the Sorcerer God left it up to his four Apostles to make tutorial labyrinths, so this was another reason why this was likely a tutorial labyrinth. As for the third and final reason, there was just the matter of progression. No tutorial labyrinths had spawned so far, so to suddenly skip them and go straight into a fortress labyrinth, one that even a company of knights would have difficulty clearing, would be a huge leap in difficulty.


    ¡°Okay, what?¡± Taylor asked, finally breaking into Francesco¡¯s pensive silence.


    ¡°...I have a certain Skill.¡± Francesco decided to lie for a variety of reasons. ¡°It gave me an awareness of what this Dungeon might be like.¡±


    ¡°So, what is this Dungeon like?¡± Taylor asked.


    ¡°It is a labyrinth.¡± Taylor stared at Francesco as if he had said the most obvious thing in the world. ¡°The labyrinth itself is a monster. The Boss Monster.¡± Francesco could see they were starting to look panicked again so he quickly continued. ¡°However, it¡¯s not the typical Boss Monster. The walls and pathways are its body, but it actually has very limited offensive capabilities. It relies on traps and monsters to defeat its foes, but as you can see, they are quite easy to deal with.¡±


    ¡°Trap? But, we didn¡¯t encounter any traps.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s not quite right. The part of the wall I just stabbed was a monster. I even got a Stat Point after killing it and you saw how it disappeared.¡± Taylor nodded, convinced at least about that part. ¡°These monsters also have almost no offensive capability, but they can mimic the walls of the labyrinth.¡± Taylor seemed to get it now.


    ¡°So, it can make those kinds of traps.¡±


    ¡°Yes. And it is also possible that there are other traps further ahead that we simply haven¡¯t encountered.¡±


    ¡°Wait, do you mean the rest of the party may have fallen into a trap?¡± Riccardo asked.


    ¡°Possibly,¡± Francesco answered. He could tell that he was about to suggest supporting them, but Francesco continued. ¡°However, they are not particularly dangerous for most.¡± Francesco meant what he said, but he was also speaking from a standard that was not quite in line with the current raiding parties of Earth. ¡°The traps are mainly meant to cause panic and confusion, or to delay or starve out trespassers. However, since we have found the hidden path, we only need to follow it to the centre of the labyrinth. That is where the core should be.¡±


    The others looked confused again. Francesco may have said a little too much all at once. Thankfully, though, they didn¡¯t question him further, and they finally started down the hidden path. And there were definitely many more questions they could have asked. Such as how Francesco knew that particular part of the wall was a monster, or why he thought there would be a hidden path in this area, or even about where the end door really led to? However, the others must have also felt that such questions would be better left until after the Dungeon was cleared.


    There were a couple more hidden paths that Francesco had to locate, but other than that, it was a mostly uneventful trek. Then, they finally reached the centre of the labyrinth. Instead of another false wall, it was an open entrance. Inside, they could see a massive pit-like gap that spanned across the room. On the other side of the room, there was an Empowering Stone at either corner, and between the two of them was a floating, shimmering blue orb that was about one foot in diameter. Taylor wasn¡¯t sure whether or not to be surprised that Francesco¡¯s guesses continued to be correct.


    ¡°Well, is there anything else we should take heed of before we proceed?¡± Riccardo asked, as if expecting to still be a major participant.


    ¡°Maybe I can have my familiar scan the room more before we enter?¡± Taylor suggested. Francesco thought for a moment.


    ¡°Is your familiar capable of instantly destroying an Empowering Stone?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but, hold on¡­I¡¯m not sure. It¡¯s no problem destroying a C-rank Empowering Stone, but the reports state the B-rank Empowering Stones are much tougher.¡±


    ¡°Is speed even an issue here, Francesco?¡± Riccardo asked. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t even take Francis half a minute, even if its Defense was three times as much.¡±


    ¡°No, Francis should stay at the back. And yes, speed will be an issue.¡± Francesco clicked his tongue. To think that he, who once slew dragons, would have to think so hard about destroying the core of a simple tutorial labyrinth. If he was even as strong as when he first officially became a knight, this would be child¡¯s play for him.


    ¡°What kind of traps are there?¡± Taylor asked, realizing the reason behind Francesco¡¯s hesitation. ¡°Other than that suspicious pit, I guess.¡±Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    ¡°The pit itself is just that. A deep pit. Might be a bit too wide for either of you to comfortably get across, but it won¡¯t be an issue for me. However¡­¡±


    ¡°However?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯ll take me a while to destroy everything on the other side. Especially the core.¡± After Francesco said this, he took out a mana potion from his Inventory. He didn¡¯t use too much mana so far, but he wanted to make sure he had as much available as possible. This sudden lack of confidence surprised all of them.


    ¡°Alright, so what¡¯s the plan?¡± Riccardo asked after Francesco finished drinking the potion. Taylor also looked at him expectantly. Instead of answering, though, Francesco took up a throwing stance and launched his spear at the far right Empowering Stone like a javelin. Immediately after throwing it, he rushed into the room. The instant he did, the entire room started to shake as the ceiling collapsed.


    Dozens of stone blocks came raining down the entrance half of the room. However, Francesco was just too fast. The first stone to break was the Empowering Stone as Francesco¡¯s spear drove straight through it. Then, before reaching the pit, Francesco recalled his spear and it flew back to him, who was already in another throwing stance. He launched his spear into the second Empowering Stone and immediately leapt across the pit before any of the falling stones could get close.


    The second Empowering Stone was instantly destroyed as well, and at that moment, the colour of the labyrinth¡¯s core changed from blue to green. However, after Francesco used his Telekinesis Skill to recall his spear again, the colour of the labyrinth¡¯s core changed again, this time from green to yellow. Francesco, as well as every other Dungeoneer, must have received notice of this, but Francesco was only focused on finishing this as quickly as he could.


    The moment the spear was in his hands once more, he used every sort of enchantment and empowerment he had access to strengthen his next attack. Having crossed the gap, the labyrinth core must have sensed its imminent destruction, and now even the ceiling on this half of the room was collapsing. Francesco raced towards the core as he finished applying all of his known buffs to his spear. Then, at the optimal distance, he launched his final attack and plunged his spear into the core. Hundreds of sparks of magical energy erupted outwards when the point of his spear made contact with the labyrinth¡¯s core, and then his spear tip drove itself past the core¡¯s shell, causing a small fracture. However, that was it.


    The spear penetrated the core, but by no more than an inch. Francesco was not completely finished, and he could definitely try to attack again, but with this level of damage, he wasn¡¯t sure one more attack would do it. The first stones would be crashing down soon, and the ones above his head would certainly fall on him before he could launch a proper third attack.


    However, he didn¡¯t let such thoughts delay his follow-up. Francesco retracted his spear and thrust at the core once more, aiming for the small gap he had already created. Just before he did, though, he saw swirling smoke-coloured lights appear around the surface of the core. This was not something he had ever seen a labyrinth¡¯s core do before. But, Francesco didn¡¯t let this strange sight change what he had to do. At the very least, he didn¡¯t perceive these new lights as dangerous to himself.


    The tip of his spear dug into the core again, and more sparks began erupting around the opening of the core as the crack grew wider. Then, with more ease than he expected, the spear slid itself deeper into the core and the cracks across the core spanned across more than half of its surface. His spear tip reached the very centre of the core, and the shimmering light of the core suddenly went out, just like a bulb that had blown its fuse. The core was no longer floating, and as it suddenly fell to the ground, it pulled Francesco¡¯s spear along with it. Francesco was pulled downwards onto the ground just as the rest of the ceiling finished crumbling down upon him.


    *****


    One minute. From the time when the rest of the raiding party activated the trap, up until the point when Francesco destroyed the labyrinth¡¯s core, only one minute had passed. In this single minute, had they merely waited for that little bit of time, what could have been avoided?


    The ceiling fell apart and massive chunks of stone fell down on the Dungeoneers below. Some were just stone, but most were the golem monsters. They had next to zero offensive power, but with their incredibly high Defense, if they landed square on your head, it could even kill a surprised C-rank Dungeoneer. Even if they didn¡¯t land on your head, they could still crush your feet, your hands, your back, or, well, basically any part of your body if your Defense wasn¡¯t high enough. There were three Dungeoneers who lacked the luck or the Defense to survive the initial bombardment.


    However, when the ceiling fell apart, it wasn¡¯t just stone that fell on them. There were snakes as well, and not just any snakes, of course. What can you expect from a snake that lives in a B-rank Dungeon? As far as their appearances and defensive abilities went, they were not much different from ordinary vipers. Instead, the danger was in their fangs. The viper¡¯s fangs could bypass most of a Dungeoneer¡¯s Defense Stat, and then when the fangs bit through flesh, they would inject their venom. Ordinary venom was nearly harmless against the Stamina Stat of most C-rank Dungeoneers, but this venom was, of course, magical in nature. Only Poison Resistance or other similar Skills would protect you from the effects of the venom.


    The effects of the venom included dizziness, weakness, and impaired motor functions. The bite was also very painful, and screams could be heard throughout the dark chamber a few seconds after the ceiling collapsed. As far as lethality goes, the venom could almost be considered non-lethal as the venom itself does not exactly kill you directly. Of course, the side effects, when in battle, could certainly cause one to make a mistake or slip up that would cost someone their life. However, the venom is still considered lethal because it prevents blood clotting. Unless the venom is treated, the bite wounds will never heal, and the bleeding will never cease. Constantly receiving blood transfusions or drinking health potions would keep you alive, but, otherwise, it would be a somewhat slow, but gradually agonizing death.


    Most of the Dungeoneers, in a wild panic, desperately and blindly defended themselves against the hidden threats as the screams throughout the chamber only made it harder to stay focused as time went on. Miel, with her animalistic instincts, easily evaded the falling stones and the vipers. Angela, a bit less agile, was more concerned about Miel¡¯s whereabouts and was panicking because she did not know where she went. She frantically moved about as the stones harmlessly smashed against her indomitable body. As the panic continued, amidst the screams of pain and shouts for help, Miel called out to Angela.


    ¡°Angela, can you hear me!¡± Although still blind, Angela immediately turned towards Miel¡¯s voice.


    ¡°Miel, where are you? Are you okay?!¡± she shouted back, oblivious to the plight of those around her.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine! Follow my voice! I will lead you back to the closed entrance so that you can break it open and we can all get out of here!¡± Without waiting for affirmation, Miel started moving towards the blocked off entrance. Thanks to a particular Skill, Miel possessed a form of night vision which was even potent enough to allow her to kill the snakes around her. If she wanted to, it would also be possible to kill all the snakes one by one, but she didn¡¯t want to do that because it would still take her a long time to do so, since many of the snakes were also slinking around underneath and between the rubble, and she thought it would be more expedient to evacuate everyone instead. She did, however, still kill any snakes she came across as she led Angela back to the entrance, calling out to her every couple seconds.


    They quickly returned to the entrance and Miel smacked her hand against the stone slab that blocked the way out. The sound let Angela know where to hit. Angela asked to make sure Miel was out of the way, and then proceeded to ram at the stone. It shuddered from the first attempt, cracked from the second, and crumbled into pieces on the third. Light shone into the chamber once more, finally revealing the horrible state the rest of the Dungeoneers had found themselves in. At the same time, all the Dungeoneers then received the two Empowering Stone notifications one right after the other. Then, mere seconds later, all the snakes were suddenly pacified, and calmly moved away from the Dungeoneers to slowly slither around. Miel looked upon the still-not-quite tranquil scene for a couple seconds before fully registering what must have happened. Under the newfound light, Angela looked to Miel like a lost puppy that found its owner again.


    ¡°Let¡¯s bring everyone outside,¡± Miel said in a much softer voice now.


    *****


    After exiting the Dungeon and giving a brief summary of the events, a heated argument erupted. Miel and the remaining able-bodied East Prussian Dungeoneer blamed the other Prussian Dungeoneers for their reckless behaviour which had caused five deaths thus far and hospitalized fifteen others. Herr Schumann and his two associates deflected the blame by insisting that the East Prussians voluntarily entered the chamber with them and that they were in agreement with their actions when they did not object. Of course, the other side argued that they were misrepresenting what really happened. When the EA official asked for input from Taylor and the rest, they had nothing to add, since they were not present at the chamber. Herr Schumann cited that as another reason why fault falls on everyone collectively, and since they were all Dungoneers who understood the risks, everyone should be expected to take on whatever consequences befell them.


    They broke up and went their separate ways, with Miel feeling especially bitter about the situation. Part of her was even silently blaming the East Prussians since if they didn¡¯t let their pride get in the way, then only those aristocratic Prussian Dungeoneers would have suffered for their recklessness. Angela, clearly seeing how upset Miel was, cheerfully tried to suggest getting some desserts. Miel wondered whether to comment on her somewhat tactless suggestion, but she ended up feigning a smile and agreeing. Francesco looked at the pair of them curiously as they left.


    ¡°Did they suddenly catch your eye?¡± Taylor asked Francesco suddenly. He turned to face her and noticed that Francis and Riccardo were nowhere to be seen. ¡°I asked them if I could speak to you alone for a bit.¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, to answer your question, I was just being a bit envious.¡±


    ¡°Of those two? Why, you want a sister?¡±


    ¡°I do not particularly desire having a sibling.¡± Francesco answered that part of the question, not understanding that Taylor was joking. ¡°But, I am envious of the strength of the older one. She said she smashed through the closed entrance of the chamber.¡±


    ¡°So? You were the one who destroyed the labyrinth core. That seems like something that would take a lot more strength.¡±


    ¡°It does, but I only did so using my spear and every form of empowerment I had available. I also have you to thank for weakening it during my second attack.¡± Taylor was taken aback and was far too slow in recomposing herself to fake her next response.


    ¡°How did you know about that?¡± she asked.


    ¡°A labyrinth core does not possess any abilities that include smoke-coloured lights. Also, I have a pretty good idea on what my own strength is like, and the damage I dealt in my second attack was beyond my expected range.¡±


    ¡°But how did you know it was me?¡±


    ¡°If it were Francis or Riccardo, they would have told me.¡± Taylor looked like she was about to hit herself on the head.


    ¡°Ah, right. Yeah, I guess that does make it pretty obvious. I was kind of hoping you would just chalk it up to getting in a really good hit.¡±


    ¡°I always get in a really good hit.¡± Francesco wasn¡¯t trying to joke, but Taylor laughed anyway. Francesco didn¡¯t understand what she was laughing about, but continued. ¡°I assume you wish for me to keep your Skill a secret.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, that would be nice. It has a really short duration and a really long cooldown so it¡¯s really only useful for massive, final blows, but if others find out I can debuff a Boss Monster, everyone is going to always expect me to participate in the hardest Dungeon raids. Heck, they¡¯ll probably even pester me to deal with Outbreaks as well.¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, if you wish to remain in obscurity, then so be it.¡± Taylor leered at Francesco a bit for his remark.


    ¡°Well, let¡¯s just say I like to keep some secrets about myself if it involves risking my life. Aren¡¯t you the same?¡± Francesco considered arguing back that their secrets were not at the same level, but he realized that would only cause her to press him for further details. However, he didn¡¯t think it would be good to just remain silent again, so he tried to think of a proper response. This, of course, would have caused awkward silence anyways, but Taylor suddenly received a text and excused herself for a moment to read it. With the added time, Francesco finally knew what to say.


    ¡°Yes, I suppose you might be right about that.¡± Taylor looked at him with a tint of confusion.


    ¡°Hey, um¡­do you mind signing something for me? Well, not for me, but for a friend of mine.¡±


    ¡°...Sure.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s this really big fan of Dungeoneers, and he even keeps begging the Earth Alliance to let him write articles about them on their website.¡±


    ¡°So¡­he¡¯s a journalist on Dungeoneers?¡±


    ¡°Um, well, I guess you could say that. Writing those kinds of articles isn¡¯t his main job, though.¡± Taylor dumbly searched her clothes for something for Francesco to sign.


    ¡°What¡¯s his name?¡± Francesco asked as he took out some paper from his Inventory.


    ¡°Uh, do you always just carry that around in your Inventory?¡±


    ¡°Riccardo says I should since I have a lot of fans.¡± Taylor smirked a bit at his remark.


    ¡°Yeah, I guess you do.¡± Francesco then took out a marker. ¡°Make it out to Zack.¡±


    ¡°Just Zack?¡±


    ¡°Zack Liner.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡± Francesco signed the paper and then handed it over to Taylor.


    ¡°Thanks. Hopefully, he¡¯ll finally stop asking me about this stuff, but knowing him¡­what¡¯s this?¡± Taylor pointed to something else on the paper.


    ¡°My phone number. It¡¯s something a lot of people ask for.¡± Taylor cocked an eyebrow at him, thinking that maybe Francesco Ricci wasn¡¯t a completely changed man after all. But then, she put on a bit of a mischievous smile.


    ¡°Oh, Zack¡¯s going to love that.¡±

 Jungle Raid

    Date: March 23? 2021 - 5:30 pm?


    Location: Central Africa? (B-rank Dungeon)


    Sierra Madrazo raced through the jungle-like Dungeon in search of the mid-boss. Due to a variety of circumstances, the raiding of this Dungeon had to be delayed until today, which meant there was less than four hours left until the Dungeon Outbreak. Now, Sierra wasn¡¯t worried about the added difficulty of fighting monsters after an Outbreak, but her raiding partner was S. In the event of an Outbreak, Sierra might not even get the chance to fight the Boss. Although, despite being aware of the current difference in their strength, Sierra still challenged S to a race where they would each track down one of the mid-bosses and then proceed to where the Boss was. S may have an advantage in power, but with her instincts and speed, maybe she could still claim a victory.


    As she ran through the jungle, she encountered many bizarrely yellow, panther-looking monsters. Despite being similar in size, they were much stronger than regular panthers and had amazing reflexes. Well, amazing compared to other common monsters. For a B-rank Dungeoneer of Sierra¡¯s calibre, they could barely even slow her down. However little they did slow her down, though, Sierra was concerned if she was losing ground. Unlike S, Sierra didn¡¯t have any Skills that let her deal with multiple monsters at the same time. As she had to spend her precious few seconds killing each panther, she wondered if S may have just exploded the entire area as they continued on their way.


    There was nothing she could do about that, though. She was already using her Evasion II Skill (the upgraded Evasion Skill) to raise her speed and Dexterity, and her Instinct Skill was at the A-rank. She just had to keep searching for this mid-boss that even the scout could not locate. However, the scout¡¯s time with the Dungeon was cut prematurely when he suddenly had to withdraw. This thought made Sierra smirk. She wondered what it was like outside the Dungeon for her manager, Juan, right now.


    Sierra continued to run around killing panthers until her Instinct Skill suddenly gave her warning of something. She immediately scanned the area around her. Tropical trees and lush bushes were everywhere, and the last panther she just killed started disappearing into mist. Right as the mist was about to vanish completely, Sierra instinctively moved her head out of the way as something invisible shot past her. That something impacted a tree behind her and smashed right through it, causing the top half of the tree to come crashing down. This was an attack to be wary of, because Sierra had tried hitting some of those trees earlier and found that their bark was as tough as steel. Sierra judged the direction of the attack based on the tree and started rushing towards it. However, she didn¡¯t rush in an exactly straight line. She moved a bit to the side and felt something quickly fly past her back towards the source of the attack.


    This gave Sierra more information about the attacker, but she wasn¡¯t completely sure what to expect. However, fearlessly, she continued to close in on where she thought the enemy was. As she was about to run past a couple trees, she noticed some rustling in the bushes just ahead of her. She dived into them, ready to beat down whatever was in there, but found nothing. Then, before she could get back up, something struck her hard on the right side of her head. The impact briefly lifted her off her feet and she was knocked over about five feet to the side, her own feet dragging along the soil for a second, causing her to not be knocked over quite as much.


    It was a strong blow, but it wasn¡¯t enough to deactivate her Layered Defense. The attack also gave Sierra more information again. Only slightly dazed, she got back up and looked to where the attack likely came from. Just before she could react, another invisible attack struck her square in the chest. This knocked Sierra off her feet again and she smashed into a tree behind her, causing it to break and fall over. However, this wasn¡¯t as bad as getting hit in the head again. She hardly needed to shrug it off as she got back up again with a huge grin on her face.


    She tucked in her chin and went racing towards the invisible attacker. She predicted the attack would come for her head this time, and she was right. Her Instinct Skill alerted her just before it made impact. The attack struck her on her forehead and made Sierra lose her footing mid-sprint. However, she was mentally prepared for it this time, and although the attack connected and was going to knock her back, she brought out both of her hands and clutched at something just in front of her face.


    Her hands grasped onto something that felt somewhat rubbery and sticky as her body started to fly backwards from the blow. When she was sure she had grabbed onto something, she tightened her grip as much as possible. Sierra flew back about ten feet in the air, but refused to let go. She crashed onto the ground, but quickly recovered and started racing back towards the location of the attack with the invisible object still in her grasp. She felt the invisible object tugging against her as it tried to retract.


    She let it do so. She jumped off the ground and let the object retract and she flew forwards in the air, her grip still tight. This flight didn''t last long though. The retraction reached its end and Sierra felt an invisible maw clamp down on her hands. The force of the bite was quite strong, but it still wasn¡¯t enough to break her Layered Defense. She still couldn¡¯t see who her enemy was, but she knew that it was right in front of her now.


    She stood her ground and readied a Power Strike. Sierra could feel the monster twist his mouth about to either get Sierra to let go or to bite off Sierra¡¯s hands, but it was futile, and not just because the monster apparently had no teeth. Then, the monster started to thrash about more violently and this time, Sierra did lose her footing. She also suddenly felt a different invisible object lashing at her like a whip. It was unexpected, and Sierra could feel the damage start to accumulate, and although her clothes were reinforced with magic, she could tear them being gradually torn apart.. However, the Power Strike was ready, and she kicked at the invisible monster.


    She had no idea what part of the monster she kicked, but she could tell it was a good hit and heard that something surely must have broken. The monster¡¯s mouth also open and she could hear it make a gasping sound. Sierra then attempted to wrestle the invisible, wounded monster to the ground as she readied another Power Strike. The monster continued to resist and thrash about, but it did so much more frantically. For the next Power Strike, Sierra let go of the invisible object with her right hand, and then smashed it into what she imagined would be its head. It definitely hit something that felt bony, and this time black blood splashed out.


    A few seconds later, the invisible monster was finally visible. It resembled a gigantic chameleon, but it had relatively small front arms and the abdominal section looked engorged, as if it had swallowed a panther whole. Most of its body was grey, or a pale white, but there were also several parts that were a mix of green and brown, as if parts of it were still trying to blend in with its surroundings. Well, whatever it truly looked like, Sierra didn¡¯t care, and she continued to beat the monster to death.


    B-rank Dungeon Mid-Boss defeated.


    Defense increased by 10


    Stamina increased by 10


    Magic increased by 10


    Skill upgraded: Layered Defense B to Layered Defense A


    New Skill acquired: Stealth D


    An upgrade on a Special Skill to A-rank? That¡¯s a huge deal. However, Sierra had no time to waste and now had to find the Empowering Stone before continuing on to Boss Monster. Unlike the mid-bosses and Empowering Stones, the appearance and location of the Boss Monster was known. It resembled a manticore and stood about fifteen feet tall. It resided in the lake of a caldera located in the heart of the jungle.


    After about ten minutes of searching through the area, Sierra finally found a yellow stone that was otherwise indistinguishable from a C-rank Empowering Stone. Just as she was preparing another Power Strike to destroy it, though, she received a notification.


    B-rank Empowering Stone has been destroyed.


    B-rank Boss will lose bonuses to all of its Stats.


    She destroyed the Empowering Stone with a Power Strike and clicked her tongue with slight disappointment. Well, maybe she could at least convince S to let her have a go at the Boss first. She left the area and made a beeline for the caldera.


    On the way there, the monsters changed from the yellow panthers to viper-like monsters. They were quick and stealthy, but Sierra was easily able to catch and crush them before they could bite her. Then, she heard the sound of something much larger than a snake closing in on her from the side. She wondered if there may have been a third, unknown type of monster in this Dungeon and made ready to intercept it. The unknown being also moved in closer and they were just about to clash when they both suddenly stopped in their tracks after recognizing each other. On the other side was a man wearing similar, military fatigues-like outfit, and had a chinstrap beard and moustache. He also had a sheathed sword at his hip. The man was prepared to then ignore Sierra and continued running ahead. Sierra ran after him.


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing S already ran ahead, Abraham?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Of course. We don¡¯t want to waste more time here than necessary,¡± he answered without even looking at her.


    ¡°We have plenty of time until the Outbreak.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not why we need to hurry.¡± Sierra sighed.


    ¡°What¡¯s the worst that could happen?¡±


    ¡°You may be able to avoid the situation, but at least think about the wellbeing of the Earth Alliance and its employees.¡± Sierra laughed at the response.


    ¡°I guess that¡¯s all the more reason why I don¡¯t want to officially work for you guys. Anyways, you didn¡¯t help S out with mid-boss, did you? It was supposed to just be a competition between the two of us.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t recall agreeing to abide by your silly contest.¡±


    ¡°What?!¡±


    ¡°Besides, if I remember your words correctly, the contest was only to find a mid-Boss, and then proceed to the Boss. S found the mid-boss by themself, and then moved on ahead.¡± Sierra was a bit taken aback by the response.


    ¡°Hey, wait a minute. Does that mean you fought the mid-boss by yourself?¡±


    ¡°Are there any other Dungeoneers with us?¡± Abraham finally looked back when he gave his answer. To Abraham¡¯s surprise, Sierra didn¡¯t look the least bit upset. She smiled and then started chuckling as they continued to run.


    ¡°Wow, I can¡¯t even keep up with you anymore! Well, looks like you should be promoted to B-rank soon.¡±


    ¡°...It¡¯s not like ranks really mean anything.¡± Abraham¡¯s tone was a bit more subdued now.


    ¡°Yeah, a number system would probably be better. I mean, between S and most of the other B-ranks, it¡¯s not even a fair comparison.¡± That wasn¡¯t what Abraham was getting at, but he was done with the topic anyway. ¡°Hey, how long ago exactly did S go ahead? Do you think we¡¯ll even get there in time?¡± Abraham thought for a moment if he should even give a proper answer when they heard something quickly approach them from ahead.


    *****


    About fifteen feet away from the floating, yellow portal, were two people seated on folding chairs around a patio table. Further off in the distance were about a dozen men armed with assault rifles that were monitoring the perimeter. One person at the table was Juan Ramirez. Next to him was a woman in a tee shirt, vest,z, hiking shorts, and hiking boots. She had a glass of whiskey in one hand and a lit cigar in the other. For at least the tenth time today, Juan had thought to himself again why he was here.


    When the B-rank Dungeon Portal was first discovered, it was reported to the Earth Alliance, and it was put on the schedule to be dealt with by the Emergency Dungeon Task Force. Pursuant to that, a scouting Dungoneer and EA officials were also dispatched to appraise the Dungeon and the surrounding area. However, before the scouting was completed, a coup took place in the capital. Revolutionary forces overwhelmed the troops in the capital and seized the city. The former government was then essentially toppled by the occupying forces, with only a few pro-government forces remaining throughout the outskirts.


    Due to the incident, the EA immediately pulled out of the area and the scouting was left incomplete. The planned Dungeon Raid was also going to be cancelled. However, the pro-government forces pleaded with the EA to continue the Dungeon Raid and the revolutionary forces also publicly stated that they would not interfere with the EA if they still intended to raid the Dungeon. The higher-ups at the EA were still skeptical and still planned to terminate any plans for raiding, but three members were still insistent on raiding: S, Sierra Madrazo, and Abraham Pereira. Despite S¡¯s pheonemal reputation and record, the raid was still going to be cancelled, but then even the chief of the EDTF, Michelle Lestrange, advocated on their behalf.


    So, that is the situation today. With less than half a day to clear the Dungeon, Juan, the three Dungeoneers, and the EDTF chief flew to Central Africa to an area barely held on by, and loosely defended by, pro-government forces.


    The woman next to Juan pushed a second glass over to him.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want a glass?¡± she asked as she took another puff of her cigar.


    ¡°I don¡¯t drink much,¡± Juan replied. He kept his expression and tone as even as possible, suppressing his instincts to panic and curse at the absurdity that he was pulled into this situation. Damnit, Sierra! Gangsters are one thing, but you are making me sit at the edge of a war zone!


    ¡°I thought Madrazo said you drink for celebrations?¡± The woman refilled her own glass.


    ¡°Is there something to celebrate right now?¡± Juan asked. Please tell me that there is, because I could use some good news.


    ¡°Well, another B-rank Dungeon is about to be cleared. Is that not good enough for you? Or maybe, it kind of loses something now that it¡¯s been the third one for the EDTF?¡± Juan wasn¡¯t thinking about that at all, but now that she brings it up, this really is the third one now. Because Juan didn¡¯t ever go inside the Dungeons, he hadn¡¯t truly appreciated the dangers of the B-rank Dungeons until the news that covered the Outbreak that occurred off the coast of Merrick. Realizing that the team he was working for was somehow capable of fighting off monsters that could literally destroy warships did put things into an interesting perspective. Well, his perspective towards the Dungeoneers. He was still scared out of his mind being here.


    ¡°Working towards resolving this international crisis that we all face is but a matter of course for the Earth Alliance,¡± Juan responded cooly and quickly. ¡°I do not mind if you see this as something worth celebrating as it is by no means an insignificant accomplishment. However, I must remain keenly aware that there is so much more to do.¡± The woman had sunglasses on, but she was clearly surprised by Juan¡¯s words. However, she quickly laughed it off.


    ¡°Damn, after all this time with the team, and having to manage someone like Madrazo, you can still say those kinds of things without missing a beat.¡± Then, she suddenly spoke in a much more serious tone. ¡°Perhaps I should take this to mean that you think your superior is acting incompetently.¡±


    ¡°Not at all, Madame Lestrange.¡± Juan¡¯s words didn¡¯t betray an ounce of fear, but he was truly concerned if he had just crossed a line. ¡°Your efforts have been admirable and made a noticeable impact towards the Earth Alliance¡¯s goals and objectives. I merely pause in my own celebration because I am so lacking in my contributions in comparison.¡± Lestrange laughed even louder now.


    ¡°Ramirez, you really are something!¡± Lestrange slapped him on the back as she continued to laugh. Juan kept his expression the same, but he was relieved. Well, relieved and a bit annoyed. Again, why did he need to be here? Because he was Sierra¡¯s manager? Look at Lestrange. Surely someone like her would be better suited for that. Yeah, she¡¯s the EDTF chief, but it¡¯s not like anyone else in the EDTF has a manager. Also, does anyone else notice how similar the two of them are?


    ¡°Madame Lestrange, there is only about two hours left before the Dungeon Outbreak. Don¡¯t you think we should issue an evacuation notice, just in case?¡± Yeah, and maybe we should plan to get out of here, too?


    ¡°Really, Ramirez? Did the last two times give you no confidence in our team?¡± Lestrange¡¯s tone remained light-hearted in comparison to Juan¡¯s seriousness.


    ¡°I, of course, have much confidence in the EDTF. However, we were only able to send three Dungeoneers this time, and they were given much less time to clear the Dungeon than usual. The scouting information on this Dungeon is also lacking. I think it is best to be cautious and take evacuation measures.¡± So, yeah. Can we just leave?


    ¡°Ramirez, I get what you are trying to say, but there really isn¡¯t a point to it. Given the political situation, the people around here aren¡¯t just going to clear out. And even if the Outbreak does occur, the EDTF would then have to start dealing with the monsters that escape the Dungeon.¡± Yeah, but I¡¯m not a Dungeoneer! At least let me leave! ¡°And, well, that kind of stuff is only in the worst case scenario.¡±


    ¡°The worst case scenario?¡± Juan asked. Isn¡¯t the worst case scenario me getting killed by a giant monster the second the Outbreak occurs?


    ¡°Yeah, the worst case scenario where they don¡¯t kill the Boss in time. But, we have S, so that¡¯s obviously not going to be a problem. Maybe the time issue would matter here if we didn¡¯t already know where the Boss is, but since that¡¯s known, then everything will be fine.¡± Lestrange took a swig from her glass.


    ¡°But the location of the mid-bosses and Empowering Stones are unknown. There simply may not be enough time to locate them.¡±


    ¡°Well, I admit they might not be able to find them in the remaining time.¡± Then, we should get the hell out of here, right? Despite Juan¡¯s initial thoughts about Lestrange¡¯s statement, her expression still didn¡¯t show the least bit of concern. ¡°But, it¡¯s not like that matters, either.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Lestrange gave Ramirez a bit of a strange look, as if this was the first dumb thing he said all day.


    ¡°Well, obviously it¡¯s because S will just kill the Boss anyway.¡± Juan repressed himself from putting on an incredulous expression. Just kill it anyway? The B-rank Boss that attacked Merrick easily destroyed a fleet of warships and barely survived a full on missile bombardment. Is defeating such a monster something one can do as simply as running an ordinary errand?


    ¡°I confess that I have never witnessed S¡¯s abilities in Dungeon clearing, but I am aware of the threat level of the B-rank Dungeon, especially after thoroughly reading through the accounts of the Merrick Dungeon Outbreak.¡± Lestrange chuckled a bit.


    ¡°I¡¯m glad I could finally find something to really shock you, then. Well, even if you don¡¯t look that shocked,¡± Lestrange added, noticing Juan¡¯s unchanged expression. ¡°You are not around for this, but once in a while we run some tests around S¡¯s powers. Same goes for the other EDTF members that volunteer for that. You know, we don¡¯t just want to send out our members to die.¡± Juan thought he may have heard that before, but of course, Sierra didn¡¯t want to have to do anything more for the EA than strictly necessary.


    ¡°So, S is powerful enough to defeat a B-rank Boss at full power even with only minimal support?¡± Well, if Lestrange is really that confident, then Juan should try to have some faith in that opinion as well. However, Lestrange looked like she had more to say than just that.


    ¡°That¡¯s putting it lightly. Heck, that Boss was an aquatic one, too, right? Against a monster like that, if we knew beforehand, S would have killed it before it ever reached the shore.¡± Juan was confused by the statement but didn¡¯t let it show.


    ¡°You mean that S can fight underwater?¡± Lestrange poured Juan a glass of whiskey and set it down in front of him.


    ¡°Here, drink that and let me tell you a story. A story about how I think the Dungeon raid is going.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t really drink,¡± Juan said again, disregarding the mood Lestrange was trying to set up. However, she continued on.


    ¡°Madrazo is probably going to want to compete against S again and make some kind of bet against them. Doesn¡¯t really matter what the details are and whether or not S really agrees. Madrozo will run off to kill one or both of the mid-bosses. Pereira, who doesn¡¯t really care what Madrozo has to say, will convince S to ignore that, assuming S was even thinking of agreeing. Instead, Pereira will go after the mid-boss instead while S goes to fight the Boss to not waste time.¡±


    ¡°That seems highly impractical,¡± Juan commented.


    ¡°Just drink and let me continue,¡± Lestrange said, only a little bit annoyed. ¡°S will go straight to the Boss, and maybe, just maybe, S will wait a little bit to see if the others have destroyed the Empowering Stones. I¡¯d say, ten minutes or so at the most.¡±


    ¡°S should really wait much longer than that.¡± Lestrange didn¡¯t even bother acknowledging Juan¡¯s second interruption.


    ¡°And then, regardless of whether the others have found the Empowering Stones or not, S will fight the Boss. It is a manticore-like monster that resides in the lake in the caldera. It is unknown how deep the lake is, but since the manticore is there, and there is no indication that it is an aquatic monster, it probably is not too deep. There are also various stone platforms throughout the caldera for footing. Well, not that any of that matters.¡± Lestrange paused, as if expecting Juan to make another comment. He wasn¡¯t planning to, but now he felt he had to.


    ¡°I see. And how do you think the fight will go?¡±


    ¡°The water really won¡¯t be an impediment to S because of their Hydromancy Skill. They can glide over the lake¡¯s surface, as well as giving plenty of resources in order to assault the Boss with pressurized water blasts. In combination with this, in addition to attacking the Boss from all directions and having full range of movement, S will use their Electromagnetism Skill. This Skill can be used in combination with the Hydromancy Skill to create an even more powerful, high energy water cannon attack. It can also be used to heat the water around the manticore to create a boiling environment. The temperatures will far exceed the boiling point of water, and even if the heat doesn¡¯t do much damage, it will create a huge amount of steam to obscure S¡¯s movements. Thanks to S¡¯s Stealth Skill as well, they will be able to constantly move around and attack while evading or giving time to a more powerful attack.¡±


    ¡°That does sound very impressive, but we¡¯ve already seen how B-rank Bosses can even withstand missiles to a large degree.¡±


    ¡°If this was still S from nine months ago, perhaps it would still be too much. But S¡¯s Stats and Skill ranks have both risen significantly. And S also has another Skill that synergizes with their other Skills that raises their offensive power even more. Personally, even if they started fighting at the same time, I would not be surprised if S killed the Boss in less time than either Pereira or Madrazo could finish off either mid-boss. That manticore may have a body as heavily armoured as a bomb shelter, have the strength to smash through a mountain, or even the speed to hunt down race cars, but if they are fighting over water, S will be at another level in each category.¡±


    Lestrange slammed down her glass right as she finished speaking, and Juan looked over to the portal, as if expecting something to happen right on cue. Something did, but it was something he was dreading. Gunshots could be heard nearby, and as Juan glanced around, trying to hide his panic, he saw one of the guards suddenly fall over as bullets riddled his body. The remaining guards returned fire, but they were quickly overwhelmed.


    A minute later, more than thirty armed men appeared, and quickly swarmed around the table of the two calm-looking EA employees. The men aimed their guns at the two and ordered them to put their hands behind their heads and to go down on the ground. Neither complied. Juan was too afraid to make a move, but Lestrange just stared back at them. In the distance, more gunfire could be heard, meaning that this wasn¡¯t even all of them. One of the men, most likely the leader, then motioned for the rest of them to put their guns down. They hesitantly complied.


    ¡°You are from the Earth Alliance, yes?¡±


    ¡°Yes. And would I be correct to assume you are from the revolutionary forces?¡± Lestrange answered.


    ¡°We represent the true voice of the people. Not those capitalist dogs.¡± Lestrange thought that was a funny thing to say, since the only problem they really had with the market was that they weren¡¯t richer. As forward as Lestrange was, though, she kept that thought to herself.


    ¡°Right. So, may I ask why you have chosen to interfere with the Earth Alliance¡¯s operations?¡±


    ¡°Do not mistake our actions,¡± he began. ¡°We are not interfering with you. We are here to prevent the government dogs from stealing what belongs to the people.¡±


    ¡°So, are you saying we are stealing from the people, or that we are government dogs? Maybe, both?¡± Lestrange asked with a bit of sarcasm. Juan remained silent, but he was screaming internally despite his unchanged demeanour.


    ¡°Oh no, not at all. We are just here so that the right rules are followed!¡±


    ¡°And what exactly do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°The country receives taxes from the Dungeon raids, yes? We are here to make sure those taxes go to the people, and not to those filthy government dogs.¡± Lestrange smiled.


    ¡°Yes, the matter of taxing Dungeons is covered in the Uniform Guidelines. However, your revolutionary forces, or at least, whatever body you represent, is not an Earth Alliance member.¡± Some of the men raised their guns again, a couple of them shouting out something that neither Juan nor Lestrange could understand. However, the intention was evident.


    ¡°Surely, the Earth Alliance would not rob our people of the resources that they deserve?¡± the leader asked, clearly looking more hardened now.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t really know much about the taxes and finances part of things. Ramirez, why don¡¯t you explain to these gentlemen what the likely outcome of the Dungeon resources will be?¡± With great difficulty, Juan hid the shock from his face.


    ¡°Of course, Madame Lestrange.¡± What the heck are you making me do right now? Oh my god, am I about to die? ¡°However, anything I would say is merely my own interpretation of the matter. I do not have any authority relating to such things, either.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s fine. Just say it in a way we can all understand.¡±


    ¡°Well, the former government had recently become a provisional member of the Earth Alliance. A number of other matters were still pending, but they were soon expected to become a full member. Under the current situation, though, you could say that this is no longer that case. Now, had the change in power been enacted through the means within the country¡¯s own laws, the member status would not be affected. However, it is the Earth Alliance¡¯s opinion that such a change in power was not legitimate. Therefore, either the country is still a provisional member nation only to the extent in which the former government continues to hold legitimate power, or the entire nation is no longer a member nation at this moment. In either case, the current occupying forces would not be entitled to collect the mandated Dungeon taxes.¡± To Juan¡¯s surprise, he was able to come up with an answer on the spot. None of the revolutionaries liked that answer, of course. The leader took a few steps closer to their table and the rest of his men raised their guns.


    ¡°If we are not a member nation, then what gives the Earth Alliance any right to take what is ours?¡± Yeah, good point! Just take whatever you want and let me go, alright!


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a good point, isn¡¯t it, Ramirez! Maybe we should just let these guys take whatever they want and leave!¡± Juan entirely agreed with her words, but he knew from her expression in tone that she meant the opposite. Juan himself thought he must have lost his mind when he still chose to keep to the Earth Alliance principles.


    ¡°The Dungeon taxes are intended to support those nations afflicted with these disasters, for we know it takes a great deal of resources to prepare against these threats and that Dungeons cannot always be safely cleared. Therefore, any funds that should be allocated to the nation, if they are not transferred to the former government for fear that they would be illegitimately seized or misused, will likely be held in a bank account held in trust by the Earth Alliance. They will remain there until such time when the funds can be withdrawn to be properly used to support the nation in dealing with Dungeons and supporting or training Dungeoneers. With interest accrued.¡± Why the heck, after digging himself so deep in a hole, did Juan feel the need to add that last point? Lestrange suddenly burst out laughing. Well, at least one of us will die with a smile on their face.


    Then, with Lestrange still roaring with laughter, and the men looking ready to kill them both any second now, the portal glowed, and the three Dungeoneers exited. Most prominent among them was S who wore a helmet and a hooded raincoat over padded clothing that completely covered up their body, including gloves. The armed men quickly turned around to train their weapons on the new arrivals. The leader looked them over. Abraham and Sierra both looked a bit exhausted, and Sierra, in particular, looked like she had a bit of a rough time, judging by the torn state of the back of her clothes. The leader checked his watch before speaking.


    ¡°Looks like the three of you managed to clear the Dungeon. On behalf of my people and my country, I would like to thank you all. I would especially like to acknowledge the effort and sacrifice that must have taken.¡± At those words, Juan realized that the leader must have misunderstood the situation. He thought there were three of them because only three survived, and not because only three went in. Well, he couldn¡¯t really blame him. The official roster wasn¡¯t publicized, and who would really be crazy enough to send only three people into a thirty person raid? Juan turned his head to Lestrange, who had finally finished laughing. This person, I guess.


    ¡°Who the hell are these guys?¡± Sierra bluntly asked Juan.


    ¡°They are from the revolutionary forces. They have just recently arrived after killing our guards.¡± Juan bluntly answered.


    ¡°Oh, is that so?¡± Sierra smiled. From her eyes, Juan could feel her silently asking him if it would be okay to kill them. Sticking to his character, he did not say she could.


    ¡°We only took the actions needed to make sure our people receive what they need and deserve. Now, could you please leave our nation¡¯s resources behind?¡± As he asked, he also motioned for some of the men to turn their guns towards Juan and Lestrange again. It seems the leader at least had the mind to think that sort of threat would work better on Dungeoneers. However, he still greatly underestimated them.


    ¡°S,¡± Lestrange began, ¡°just in case it isn¡¯t clear enough, these men here are threatening to shoot us.¡± It was impossible to tell whether the statement meant anything to them.


    ¡°Now, now! There is no need to worry about any of that. Just leave behind the Dungeon¡¯s resources and you can all be on your way.¡± The truth was that even after giving up their Dungeon drops, he was planning to keep the two as hostages until all the Dungeoneers had left the continent. In fact, he was thinking he might even keep them longer than that, maybe up until the point where the former government was completely overthrown.


    ¡°Hey, is it okay if I just kill them?¡± Sierra asked aloud. He didn¡¯t show it, but Juan was about to lose his mind. Are you crazy, Sierra! I didn¡¯t signal anything to you earlier so now you just want to ask something like that right now? What if they kill me to send a message?!


    ¡°Hey, now, you know that I can¡¯t just say it¡¯s okay to kill people,¡± Lestrange answered. Thank god there is the least bit of rationality here. ¡°Obviously, you can fight them, but don¡¯t go telling people I told you that you can kill any of them.¡±


    Sierra pounced the instant Lestrange was finished talking. Although the first man went down without any chance to react, and Juan thought he saw some faint sparks here and there among the men''s guns. The ones who had their guns trained on Juan and Lestrange took their shot. However, nothing happened, and a second later, all the men were screaming in pain and dropping their guns. Juan could see something like steam coming off the guns and judging by the look of one of their hands, it seemed that the guns were suddenly overheated. S placed themself in between the no longer armed men and the two EA employees. Abraham promptly proceeded to join Sierra in knocking out the men. They tried scattering after seeing how disastrously things were going, but even with just two of them, Sierra and Abraham were much too fast and strong to escape from.


    Some more reinforcements suddenly arrived, which worried Juan when they pointed their guns in his direction, but their guns failed as well. Very quickly, the situation was brought under control. The whole time, Juan and Lestrange were seated by their undisturbed table.


    ¡°Well, this will still be a bit of a hassle,¡± Lestrange said before finally getting up. ¡°We have to hand these guys over to the government before we leave. Hey, now, don¡¯t give me that look.¡± Lestrange was speaking to S. Juan wasn¡¯t aware any sort of look was given. ¡°This was only a matter of self-defense. We can¡¯t go meddling in this situation any more than that.¡± Lestrange then looked over to Ramirez. ¡°Madrazo¡¯s got you down to a tee. You really do have quite the cajones. Hah, look at you. Still sitting down, same serious look on your face.¡± As if those words suddenly breathed life into his limbs once more, he got up as well.


    ¡°Let us promptly hand these men over to the government authorities and vacate the area. Given the current circumstances, we cannot stay here any longer than necessary, so I suggest the debriefing occur outside of the country.¡± This was the most openly urgent Juan had been today, but with his face and tone of voice, he still seemed to just be acting as the model official.


    ¡°Right, let¡¯s get going.¡± Lestrange moved in closer and whispered something to S, but Juan couldn¡¯t hear it. They packed up, contacted the nearest government forces, and then left.

 Zack Liner Interview 1

    Date: August 10 2021 - 4:27 pm


    Location: West Byzantine


    ¡°Hello, can you hear me?¡± The voice coming from Francesco¡¯s laptop was friendly and excited.


    ¡°Yes, I can hear you.¡± Right when Francesco responded, the blank screen lit up and revealed a man with messy black hair and wearing a mask that covered his nose and mouth.


    ¡°That¡¯s great. Thank you so much for agreeing to having a short interview Mr. Ricci. Ah, is it okay if I call you that?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. You can also call me Francesco, if you want.¡± Since recovering from his coma, Franecso had been avoiding any interviews, but after speaking with Taylor again after the labyrinth raid, she managed to convince him to do her this favour.


    I know there¡¯s more to how you knew about this Dungeon than you let on. However, I don¡¯t care about all the details. I am a high-ranked scout, though, so if you let me in on the kind of things you want me to keep a particular eye on, I will do so. I won¡¯t even write about it in the reports I submit to the EA, and I will make sure you are the first to know. However, I¡¯ll expect you to work with me on some other things, too, then.


    Well, this was apparently more of a freebie than a favour, since Taylor made it very clear that there was something else she was going to request of him in the future.


    ¡°Ah, thanks, Francesco. Ah, you can just call me Zack.¡±


    ¡°Okay, Zack.¡± Zack¡¯s mask covered up his face, but Francesco could tell that he seemed strangely happy about that.


    ¡°Alright, before we start recording, I just wanted to confirm a few things with you.¡± Zack¡¯s voice was still jovial, but there was also professionalism in it. ¡°I didn¡¯t want this to be a strict interview, but I also didn¡¯t want to go over any topics you don¡¯t want to talk about. I didn¡¯t receive a list back from you about that and I haven¡¯t heard from Taylor about that either. Does that mean I am free to ask you anything?¡±


    ¡°You can ask anything, but it doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll answer every question,¡± Francesco answered curtly.


    ¡°I see. Okay. Well, maybe think about it for a moment longer before I start the recording?¡±


    ¡°No, you can just start now.¡±


    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll count down. Three, two, one. Hello, everyone, I am Zack Liner. You may know of me from some articles that I have written for the Earth Alliance about Dungeons and Dungeoneers. Well, even if you don¡¯t, I am sure you will know the very special guest I am with today. From West Byzantine, we have the rising star and newly certified A-rank Dungeoneer Francesco Ricci. Francesco, thank you so much for agreeing to have an interview with me.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡± Francesco said the awkward response as if it was the most natural thing in the world to say.


    ¡°So, Francesco, how are you today?¡±


    ¡°I feel fine.¡±


    ¡°Just fine?¡±


    ¡°...Yes.¡± In Zack¡¯s mind, he was starting to think Taylor didn¡¯t tell him the whole story about what Francesco was like.


    ¡°That¡¯s great to hear. So, I am just going to start off with what I think most of us want to hear about. Earlier this week, the Earth Alliance changed the criteria for Dungeoneer ranks, and added the new A-rank. So far, there are only seven Dungeoneers in the entire world with this rank, and you are one of them. What are your thoughts about this?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d say that it seems appropriate.¡±


    ¡°A confident response, Francesco. I love it. As many viewers may know, the criteria for receiving the A-rank is quite unique. In addition to having Stat values beyond the current level of Appraisal Skills, the Dungeoneer must have participated in at least three successful B-rank Dungeon clears or Outbreak defenses. Finally, the third, and the most important and difficult criterion, is that, in the opinion of the Earth Alliance Dungeoneer Ranking Committee, the Dungeoneer must be capable of defeating a fully empowered B-rank Dungeon Boss by themself. This is because, as an A-rank Dungeoneer, they have the right to raid a B-rank Dungeon without the support of any other Dungeoneers.¡± Zack paused to allow Francesco to make a comment, but he did not. ¡°So, Francesco, do you foresee this solitary raiding right being exercised anytime soon, either by you or the other six A-rank Dungeoneers?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Well, only if other Dungeoneers don¡¯t want to raid. They tell me that I can¡¯t do it by myself if other Dungeoneers from the country also want to raid. So, I guess it probably won¡¯t ever happen for me since they¡¯ll just keep coming in with me wherever I go.¡±


    ¡°That sounds quite boastful, Francecso, but I don¡¯t doubt that you have the skills to back that up.¡± Francesco did not respond. ¡°So, do you have any particular thoughts on the other A-rank Dungeoneers?¡±


    ¡°Not really. I¡¯ve never met any of the others except for Angela Tannenbaum.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes, the famed Prussian Avenger. You even cleared a B-rank Dungeon with her before. What was your experience raiding with her like?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s strong.¡± Zack waited for him to continue, but he did not. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Just strong?¡± Francesco thought for a moment.


    ¡°Yeah, that doesn¡¯t quite sum it up.¡± Zack nodded to himself about finally getting some more information from him. ¡°She is very strong. I think she deserves to be on the list.¡± Zack waited again, but figured this was the most he was going to get.


    ¡°So, Angela Tannenbaum always raids with Miel Tannenbaum. The two of them grew up at the same orphanage and they are often described as if they are real sisters. How do you feel about team synergies in Dungeon raiding like that? Perhaps you have some thoughts on your experiences raiding as a member of the Roman Church¡¯s second Holy Vanguard team?¡± Francesco paused for a moment. At first, Zack thought this was just the prelude to another short answer, but it seemed that for once, he was finally thinking deeply about the answer.


    ¡°Of course, having a good partner is always good. Not only is it simply easier to get things done with another person at a similar level, but a good partner can cover up your weaknesses and motivate you to raise yourself to a higher level. I don¡¯t know anything about Miel Tannenbaum, but if someone as strong as Angela consistently chooses to raid with her, I¡¯m sure it¡¯s a positive thing for her.¡±


    ¡°And, do you think the same way about your Holy Vanguard team members?¡±


    ¡°Francis and Riccardo are team members, but I don¡¯t see either of them as partners. A partner is someone I could fully trust my life with and who will do the same for me. A partner is someone who will fight with me through any situation, no matter how difficult or dangerous.¡± To Zack¡¯s surprise, Francesco was raising his voice and speaking with genuine emotion.


    ¡°I see. I guess there are still some problems with synergy when it comes to your team members. Maybe, there is something in particular that they are missing or that you are searching for?¡±


    ¡°...there is. But, I¡¯m not sure I¡¯ll ever find it.¡±


    ¡°Well, let us know. What is this special something?¡± Francesco looked like he was about to properly answer the question, but stopped himself.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s nothing that someone can suddenly just have. I¡¯ll just know it if I ever see it. I¡¯ll just keep honing my skills, and if someone out there thinks they have what it takes to match me, perhaps I¡¯ll look them over.¡±


    ¡°Is that an open invitation for someone to become your raiding partner?¡±


    ¡°Nothing that generous.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure that statement will still turn some heads and stir some people up. Hopefully you can find someone to match you, whether that be someone new or someone from the Holy Vanguard.¡± Francesco gave no verbal response. ¡°Alright, if you don¡¯t mind, I have one last thing to ask about regarding the A-rank Dungeoneers.¡±


    ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    ¡°Among the seven, there are two in particular that are often hotly debated between who is the strongest among all Dungeoneers. Are you aware of this?¡±


    ¡°Are you talking about S and James Maverick?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. Now, I don¡¯t believe you¡¯ve ever met either of them, but surely you have at least something to say about the debate on the strongest? Perhaps you think you should be at the top?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m stronger than either of those two right now, but I plan to be in time.¡±


    ¡°Oh, really? It was a somewhat more humble response than Zack expected.


    ¡°Yes. With enough time, the strength I have right now will pale in comparison to the future. This, I am sure about.¡± Zack knew Francesco was being entirely sincere.


    ¡°Well, going down on that path of gaining strength, are you someone who believes there will be much more dangerous Dungeons in the future?¡±


    ¡°Absolutely.¡± Francesco responded without an ounce of hesitation. ¡°The current Dungeons barely even count as a proving ground. In the future, being able to clear these Dungeons won¡¯t even be considered an achievement.¡±


    ¡°Wow. You must think that the future A-rank Dungeons will be at an unimaginably higher difficulty.¡± Francesco stared at Zack for a few seconds.


    ¡°Zack, do you think the A-rank Dungeons will be the last Dungeons?¡± Francesco asked.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Zack was surprised by the sudden question. ¡°Oh, I know what you mean. Yeah, I think it might be possible that there will be another level after the A-rank. Not sure what it will be called but I do think there will be another level after that.¡± Francesco remained quiet again. ¡°Speaking of the different Dungeons, there have been a lot of theories about what exactly ties the different Dungeons together and why they are occurring. Do you have a personal opinion on the matter?¡±


    ¡°...I do.¡±


    ¡°Is it the same as the Roman Church¡¯s opinion?¡± Zack asked, only waiting a second this time.


    ¡°...No comment.¡± Well, that¡¯s basically the same as saying no, Zack thought.


    ¡°Alright, going back to the topic of Dungeoneers, you have been a Dungeoneer since the first day. Could you please tell us a bit about what it was like for you in the beginning?¡±


    ¡°I was very weak.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes. However, whatever you did must have paid off in the end as you are now among the strongest in the world. What would you say is the greatest reason behind your growth and success? Perhaps there were certain lessons you learned during your early raiding days?¡±


    ¡°...You could say that. After my recovery from the hospital, I was¡­a changed man.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yes. You did suffer some terrible injuries after raiding West Byzantine¡¯s first C-rank Dungeon. Thankfully, your other raiding party members brought you outside to be treated. Do you happen to personally know some of them? Maybe you would like to say some words about them?¡±


    ¡°I guess, thanks. Yes, I appreciate that they brought my body out of the Dungeon.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like you don¡¯t really keep in touch with them.¡±


    ¡°We weren¡¯t friends. But, we weren¡¯t enemies either.¡± Francesco felt the need to add that last part.


    ¡°I see. Well, of course, it¡¯s not like that means there¡¯s anything wrong with any of you. I read that one of them has since become a politician in West Byzantine.¡±


    ¡°Maybe. I don¡¯t really keep track of the names of any officials.¡±


    ¡°Well, they are also B-rank Dungeoneers in West Byzantine. Do you have anything to say about their strength? I ask because there has been a lot of discourse about the list of seven. Some argued about whether maybe some should be on there, but most were arguing that a lot of current B-rank Dugneoneers should have been included. What are your thoughts on that?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve personally met any Dungeoneers not on the list that I think should be. If, in the future, they want to change the requirements for the list, though, I don¡¯t really care. It doesn¡¯t matter to me who is named there since I¡¯ll just keep training and getting stronger no matter what. I¡¯ll even recover my legs eventually.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a great mindset to have, Francesco. Um, since you¡¯ve brought it up, do you mind if I ask you about that?¡±


    ¡°About what?¡±


    ¡°About your legs.¡±


    ¡°What about them?¡±


    ¡°Well, even now, you are paralyzed below the waist, correct?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Are there some words you¡¯d like to say about the matter? About how you managed to deal with it and how despite it all, you still managed to rise to your current level?¡±


    ¡°I use the Telekinesis Skill.¡± Zack was really hoping that this was something he would elaborate more on with a further prompt. Alas, that was not the case.


    ¡°Well, other Dungeoneers also have the Telekinesis Skill, but none of them have been able to use it to reproduce movements as agile and nimble as yours.¡±


    ¡°They either don¡¯t train enough or they don¡¯t have a good enough understanding of their body.¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, it is clear to everyone that you have worked very hard to reach your current level. Do you have any plans or changes in mind as you continue to develop in the future?¡±


    ¡°It would be nice if I could kill a dragon.¡± Zack was briefly thrown off by the answer.


    ¡°Ah, yes. Becoming a dragon slayer. Now, isn¡¯t that something that¡¯s at the peak of rpg fantasy.¡± Zack chuckled. Francesco did not. ¡°Anything else?¡±


    ¡°...and the Gods.¡± Francesco¡¯s speech was soft and slightly muddled.


    ¡°Excuse me?¡±


    ¡°Nothing definitive.¡±


    ¡°I see. Well, again, I would like to thank you very much for agreeing to this interview. It was great to have you on.¡± Francesco did not say it was great to be on. ¡°Is there anything you would like to say to conclude? Maybe some words for your fans around the world? Maybe some for your haters as well?¡±


    ¡°...No.¡±


    ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    ¡°...everyone, be careful out there.¡± Ah, well, at least that¡¯s nice to say, Zack thought. ¡°Do not easily trust promises of power.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Bye.¡± Francesco ended the video call.

 A Peaceful Interlude

    Date: February 4, 2023 - 8:03 pm


    Location:  East Byzantine


    ¡°Welcome back, everyone, to the world¡¯s first Ultimate Dungeoneer Fighting Championship Tournament¡± The commentator said excitedly. ¡°We have another exciting match lined up for the first day of the tournament!¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right, Tyson. For our next match, we will see the appearance of our first A-rank Dungeoneer in this tournament. It will be Angela Tannenbaum vs Karen Ruckman. Now, Ruckman¡¯s a B-rank Dungeoneer, but don¡¯t count her out just yet. As we¡¯ve already seen from the earlier matches between other B-ranks, the synergy in Skills and fighting experience makes a real difference.¡±


    ¡°Yes, and to add onto that Ali, I think it¡¯s also worth mentioning just how extensive Ruckman¡¯s fighting history goes. She first debuted in the professional fighting scene as a mixed martial artist when she was eighteen and up until the point she became a Dungeoneer, she has fought professionally for six years. She fought in several championship matches and even competed for the title of Merrick¡¯s women¡¯s national champion in 2019.¡±


    ¡°Yes, overall, I¡¯d say she is definitely a potential contender for the title. But, for now, let¡¯s go over Tannenbaum¡¯s history. She has never entered the fighting scene, even at an amateur level. However, as for her Dungeon raiding history, she has cleared six D-rank Dungeons, seventeen C-rank Dungeons and twenty-seven B-rank Dungeons.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­what is that, more than one B-rank Dungeons a month?¡±


    ¡°Yes, that sounds about right, Tyson. The first B-rank Dungeons appeared in March of 2021, so it¡¯s been about 23 months now.¡±


    ¡°Impressive. Well, even without any formal training, that certainly should mean she has a ton of fighting experience.¡±


    ¡°True, Tyson, but it wouldn¡¯t be fighting experience against people. Fighting against a kraken or a manticore is completely different.  Honestly, it could be a difficult adjustment.¡±


    ¡°You think fighting against people is more difficult?¡±


    ¡°Well, that depends. Obviously, I¡¯m sure any of these fighters here would prefer to go a round against me than some giant monster, but the Dungeoneers have superhuman powers. With the flexibility and intelligence of the human mind, it¡¯s just completely different.¡±


    ¡°Haha, yeah, that sounds about right, Ali. Sorry, I thought you were about to say something absurd.¡±


    ¡°You know I wouldn¡¯t joke about something like that!¡± Ali laughed back.


    ¡°Anyways, when it comes down to it, who would you give the edge to in this match?¡±


    ¡°Personally, and keep in mind that I¡¯m not a betting man, but I would say Tannenbaum has the advantage.¡±


    ¡°Really, even after all that stuff about the difference in fighting?¡±


    ¡°Hey, I am just saying it could be a factor. However, when you just look at the difference in absolute performance, as much as I hate to say it, Tannenbaum is faster and stronger.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I know what you mean, Ali. Personally, I¡¯d give it to Tannenbaum as well, but I also wouldn¡¯t be completely surprised if Ruckman somehow managed to pull this off.  Like you said, the flexibility and intelligence of the human mind is a very different thing to monsters, so it might get kind of tricky or dirty, but she could totally pull off the win.¡±


    ¡°Well, no matter what, let¡¯s hope for a great match. It is about to start right now!¡±


    ¡°Hooo! Alright! Okay, so the two of them are shaking hands right now, and now they are moving back to their respective corners in the stadium.¡±


    ¡°I see Ruckman¡¯s coach is in her corner while Tannenbaum¡¯s corner is empty.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Tannenbaum has no coach nor did she want anyone as a stand-in. I heard she requested for her sister to be in her corner, but since she is also a competitor in the tournament, that wasn¡¯t allowed.¡±


    ¡°I see. Oh, there it is, the match has started! Ruckman is cautiously making her approach¡­Tannenbaum is crossing the distance and- wow! What?!¡±


    ¡°...uh, the referee is counting¡­it¡¯s over! I mean, wow, what an unbelievable show! Tannebaum has K.O.¡¯d Ruckman with a single blow! Well, looks like we were right about this match, Ali!¡±


    ¡°Uh, yeah! I mean, I¡¯d say I thought it would still be just a little bit closer, but¡­I mean, really. Fantastic performance. Well deserved win. Um, I hope the other matches between A-rank and B-rank Dungeoneers don¡¯t look quite like that, though.¡±


    ¡°Uh, yea. Well, there are only six A-rank Dungeoneers, with three of them on either half of the bracket.¡±


    ¡°Ah, hold on for a second, they are interviewing Tannenbaum now.¡± The feed to their microphones were cut and cameras switched over. The two commentators looked at each other.


    ¡°Man, what the heck was that?¡± Tyson said to Ali.


    ¡°I knew this fighting tournament was a stupid idea.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but you said it was stupid because most of the A-rank Dungeoneers weren¡¯t even going to fight in it. You said a fighting championship without the best was going to fail.¡±


    ¡°Hey, if this tournament was only A-ranks, at least we wouldn¡¯t see absolute blow-ups like that. It¡¯s a thirty-two person tournament, but we already know what the finals is going to look like: Tannenbaum vs. Madrazo.¡±


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    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s probably what¡¯s going to happen. Well, I mean, hey, don¡¯t you think that the other fights between the B-ranks were pretty interesting.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I guess I¡¯ll give you that.¡±


    ¡°And that¡¯s still a pretty exciting final, right?¡±


    ¡°Maybe, but this tournament is just still missing so much. Guess that¡¯s what happens when it was planned for more than a year and gets constantly delayed.¡±


    ¡°Well, if this tournament does well enough, maybe there will be a second one and this time there¡¯ll be some prestige on the line to entice the other A-rank Dungeoneers.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯ll have to be a lot of prestige because a fifty million dollar prize pool isn¡¯t enough to draw their attention, apparently.¡±


    ¡°Does that surprise you? B-rank Dungeon Raids can bring in over $200 million each, and A-rank Dungeoneers get more than a tenth of that.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve been reading a lot about Dungeon raiding, huh?¡±


    ¡°Mostly just the stuff Zack Liner writes about.¡±


    ¡°Who? Ah, looks like the interview is almost over.¡±


    ¡°I wonder what the other A-rank Dungeoneers are doing right now. Think they are watching?¡± Ali shrugged his shoulders as the cameraman counted down for them.


    *****


    Haley Star, covered up with a hooded black jacket and sunglasses, was perusing the store of a high class chocolatier. Peeking out from her hood, one could see her now-yellow hair.


    ¡°Um, Miss Star. If none of the chocolates here are to your satisfaction, I would be more than happy to make anything to meet your custom desires,¡± the chocolatier suggested. Haley ignored the suggestion and kept thinking silently to herself. For a moment, the chocolatier if he had just made a terrible mistake. He had displayed more than two dozen of his finest creations, fully expecting to receive praise and for her to pick out at least two of them. With that, being known as making chocolates for one of Merrick¡¯s most female celebrities would have also led the way to both more prestige and wealth. However, if she were to walk away unsatisfied, just what would the consequences for him potentially be. As the chocolatier continued to worry, Haley received a phone call.


    ¡°Hold on,¡± she said to him, the first words spoken by her in more than half an hour. Chocolatier continued to hold his breath as she answered her phone.


    ¡°Haley, are you busy?¡± the voice on the phone asked. It was a somewhat gruff, but business-like tone.


    ¡°Yes, I am.¡±


    ¡°...What are you doing?¡±


    ¡°I am picking out chocolates.¡±


    ¡°...to eat?¡± One could hear slight confusion in the man¡¯s voice.


    ¡°What?¡± Haley asked back, even more confused than the caller.


    ¡°Haley, another B-rank Dungeon has appeared.¡± The caller had decided to just get to the point. ¡°When is your earlier availability?¡±


    ¡°What? I don¡¯t know. Do I even need to go to these anymore? There¡¯s like four other A-rank Dungeoneers in Merrick that can do this.¡±


    ¡°...You make it sound like this is me one-sidedly forcing you to go. Wouldn¡¯t you profit most from going?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need any more money. If I have free time, I¡¯m only going to spend it on what I want to do.¡±


    ¡°You were the one who said fighting in Dungeons was interesting.¡±


    ¡°Okay, two things. First, that was from an interview two years ago. Second, it¡¯s not fun anymore. Even if I don¡¯t destroy any of the Empowering Stones first, none of the B-rank Bosses will even last a minute. How is that fun?  Just let the other Dungeoneers do it and get more money, instead.¡±


    ¡°To continue our streak of zero casualties from B-rank Dungeon clears in Merrick this year, we would like the A-rank Dungeoneers to continue taking the lead.¡±


    ¡°Okay, then get one of the others to do it.¡±


    ¡°They are all out of the country at the moment.¡±


    ¡°What? Do you need someone today? Just fly one of them back here. Is Merrick¡¯s Dungeon Director incapable of doing that?¡± The caller was having difficulty understanding why Haley was being more combative than usual. Is she just in a bad mood?


    ¡°You are not just buying chocolates, are you? I apologize if I have called you at a bad time.¡± Haley was just about to raise her voice some more, but then suddenly stopped herself.


    ¡°Whatever. I just don¡¯t want to do it, okay?¡±


    ¡°I understand. I will see if I can make other arrangements in the meantime. The scouting should be concluded in a couple days, though, so if you change your mind, please let me know.¡±


    ¡°...Okay.¡±


    ¡°And, if there are any concerns that you have, please let me know, and I will do my best to help.¡±


    ¡°...Any concerns?¡±


    ¡°Yes, any.¡±


    ¡°...I have a question.¡±


    ¡°Ask away.¡±


    ¡°What do you think are good chocolates to give a friend for Valentine¡¯s Day?¡± The caller paused. Did he hear that right?


    ¡°...Sorry, I think I might have heard you wrong. You are asking what kind of chocolates you should suggest a friend to give their partner for Valentine¡¯s Day, right?¡±


    ¡°No, I am asking what chocolates to give a friend for Valentine¡¯s Day.¡± Alright, so that was what she said earlier.


    ¡°...I am not familiar with giving friends chocolates on that day. Is this something more common among young women?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s common in Sunland.¡± Sunland, an island nation in the Pacific Ocean. If he remembers correctly, Haley¡¯s mother was born there.


    ¡°Your friend is from Sunland?¡±


    ¡°No! Okay, forget it. Bye.¡± Haley hung up, and then turned towards the chocolatier. ¡°You say you can make something custom?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course,¡± he replied almost breathlessly, as if he was holding his breath throughout the entire call.


    ¡°How long will you take?¡±


    ¡°It depends on the ingredients and what kinds of chocolates you want.¡± Haley didn¡¯t look very pleased with that response. ¡°However, if money is not an issue, I guarantee it will be done before Valentine¡¯s Day.¡± Haley nodded.


    ¡°Good. Take me to the kitchen. I want to see you try some things I have in mind first.¡±


    ¡°You want to experiment with something right now?¡±


    ¡°Is that a problem?¡±


    ¡°Well, there are other customers and-¡± Haley took out several wads of taped-together hundred-dollar bills from her Inventory. The chocolatier turned to one of his staff members.


    ¡°We¡¯re closing the store to all other visitors right now!¡± The staff member nodded and left to inform everyone else. ¡°Follow me, Miss Star.¡±


    *****


    Valentina Giocondo stood in the hallway leading to her mansion¡¯s living room. In the living room were the rest of her three siblings who were seated on two couches in front of the television, which was currently showing the Ultimate Dungeoneer Fighting Championship Tournament. Valentina brought her hand next to her mouth and whispered into it.


    ¡°Luigi, have you noticed anything unusual so far?¡± she asked into her hand.


    ¡°...unusual in what way?¡± the voice of Luigi Gallo whispered back. In a stadium in Constantinople, Luigi was hunched over and whispering into his collar.


    ¡°If you are not sure, then just tell me everything.¡±


    ¡°...does it have to be right now? Can''t it wait until I get back to the hotel?¡±


    ¡°What if you get assassinated before then?¡±


    ¡°...do you really think they are going to kill me?¡± Luigi¡¯s voice was still a whisper, but the panic was evident. ¡°But, I¡¯m a West Byzantine senator.¡±


    ¡°Who¡¯d be more likely to kill a West Byzantine senator than someone from East Byzantine?¡±


    ¡°Then why did you send me here?!¡± Luigi had accidentally raised her voice and was now looking around him in a panic to see if someone had noticed. Luckily, there weren¡¯t too many others seated around him, and the ones nearby seemed busy talking to themselves, probably talking about the recent knockout.


    ¡°You just need to do what I¡¯ve ordered you to do. So, give me a report of anything unusual.¡±


    ¡°...something unusual¡­well, maybe there is something up with the betting odds.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°The odds of Angela Tannenbaum winning the last match was 1.25 to 1. But, the odds of Sierra Madrazo winning her match is 1.03 to 1. Oh, actually, it might have been updated since I last checked.¡±


    ¡°...Luigi, have you been making bets there?¡±


    ¡°...yes¡­¡±


    ¡°You do know that I can make the invisible communicator on your end explode, right?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just some bets! Come on, I barely make any money as a senator! You pick and choose which groups I can get money from!¡± Valentina silently scoffed at him. For Luigi, a million dollars in bribes is barely any money. It was a bit hypocritical, though, since Valentina would have also considered that barely any money as well if that was all she had.


    ¡°If making those bets is distracting you from observing something important, then you can rest assured that I will exact any of my future losses from you, personally.¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay, I understand. I got my eyes peeled, Valentina.¡±


    ¡°That had better be the case. I¡¯m not so quick to believe that this tournament was organized and held in East Byzantine, a nation lacking in high-ranking Dungeoneers, just for entertainment. If they catch onto you, you had better deliver me all your information before they kill you.¡±


    ¡°May I have permission to run away before that happens?¡±


    ¡°No. Just don¡¯t let it happen.¡± Valentina cancelled the communication magic and went back to her living room.

 Third Anniversary (Part 1)

    Date: March 12, 2023 - 1:20pm


    Location: Merrick


    It has been three years since the first Dungeon Outbreaks. For many countries throughout the world, this day is considered a national holiday, although, since this particular anniversary is a Sunday, it doesn¡¯t really matter. Nonetheless, memorial services are held throughout the world and the following day will be the holiday instead.


    However, today is also a reminder of more than just the losses caused by the Dungeons. It is also a reminder of treasure seeking and adventuring. Rates of casualties were high during the first year and following the first month of the B-rank Dungeon appearances, but after that, Dungeoneering was seen as a lucrative profession that was well worth the risks. Thanks to huge advances in technology, especially in developing Dungeon cores as highly efficient and clean sources of energy, the profits from Dungeon clearing skyrocketed.


    For B-rank Dungeons, the total value of Dungeon cores, common monsters, mid-bosses, and the Boss altogether, could reach almost $200 million. And, if you factored in the various rare and very rare items that could drop, you could earn even more than that. For example, a B-rank Archery Bow could range in value from between $30 million to even as high as $90 million. However, there were riches to be obtained even from lower ranked Dungeons. Even D-rank Dungeons, after trading in all of the drops for cash, could be worth more than $1 million.


    Using that value as a basis, many newly awakened Dungeoneers end up completely dropping all of their old plans for the future to seriously pursue Dungeoneering. If they could even just clear one or two D-rank Dungeons a year, even if split ten ways, they would be set for life. And, after clearing enough D-rank Dungeons, they could naturally become strong enough to even take on C-rank Dungeons in the future, which were worth up to twenty times more when cleared.


    All of this was the reason why Todd Phillips told his parents that he was planning to drop out of the school in order to become a Dungeoneer. His parents tried to argue about the dangers and that there were plenty of Dungeoneers who pursued other careers and education paths at the same time, but Todd was adamant. The time he spent on school would be a waste when compared to time he could spend on studying Dungeons or training his Skills. They were still skeptical, however, and insisted that he should only start trying it out during the summer, while on break from school. Todd pretended to compromise, but he secretly stopped attending his classes and started training and preparing for the next D-rank certification exam.


    After spending the morning studying at the downtown library, he ate lunch and was on his way back to the library to study some more. While waiting to cross the street, he noticed a man wearing a face mask. His face was hidden, but Todd thought his hair and even the mask itself seemed familiar. Todd must have been staring a bit too intently as the man also looked back at him and seemed to notice his gaze. At first, the two looked at each other a bit awkwardly, and then almost simultaneously they finally recognized each other.


    ¡°Carlos?¡± Todd was the first to speak.


    ¡°Todd, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s me.¡± The two of them happened to take a few of the same electives at the same university, and even partnered up for some assignments. However, neither of them would exactly call the other person a friend. Perhaps slightly more than a casual acquaintance. ¡°Um, how¡¯s it going?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. You?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m doing fine as well. Just planning to study.¡±


    ¡°I see. I¡¯m here to go shopping for some new cooking equipment.¡±


    ¡°Ah, yeah, you were in the culinary department.¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Are you still in English?¡± Todd hesitated a bit before answering. Should he just casually lie and say he was? However, seeing Carlos¡¯ mask, and remembering that he had asked him about it before, he decided not to. ¡°No, I¡¯ve changed my plans.¡±


    ¡°Oh? What did you transfer to?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m dropping out.¡± Carlos didn¡¯t seem particularly surprised by the sudden revelation. ¡°I awakened as a Dungeoneer a few weeks ago and I¡¯m planning to take the D-rank certification exam next Saturday.¡±


    ¡°I see¡­well, if you really think it¡¯s not something you can do while being in school-¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not! I need to be as focused on this as possible!¡± It was almost as if Todd was arguing with his parents again. Despite how strong Todd¡¯s response was, Carlos¡¯ expression hardly changed.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s up to you on how you want to do it. But, you still might want to take it a bit slow and be careful. Even D-rank monsters can be very dangerous.¡± Todd was ready to launch into another animated argument, but he held himself back, since he knew that Carlos was speaking from his personal experience.


    ¡°Yeah, of course. That¡¯s why I am studying up on monsters and Dungeons as much as I can.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good. Whether you¡¯re doing this because you think it¡¯ll be exciting or you just want to help people, you should always keep in mind your safety.¡±


    ¡°Uh, yeah.¡± Todd¡¯s primary motivation was the money, but he thought it would be bad to say that right now. The two of them turned to face the street again and saw that the light had not changed. Or maybe it had, and they just hadn¡¯t noticed it the first time. Either way, they continued to wait. Then, just when the light changed, they felt the ground violently shake and a great flash of light appeared in the middle of the crosswalk. When the light faded a bit and the shaking started to cease, everyone nearby could see a giant, green oval-shaped portal suspended above the crosswalk.


    There were a variety of reactions to this sight. The cars stopped in front of the crosswalk remained there, but their drivers were clearly upset. They knew traffic was going to be shut down for a while. Currently, they were debating in their heads whether to risk it to just drive through anyways before the police shut down the road or just wait here. There were also three different reactions amongst the pedestrians. Some who had never seen a portal in person before were taking out their phones to try and take pictures or film it, before realizing that this could not be done with ordinary cameras. A couple more knowledgeable pedestrians just crossed the street, expecting nothing to occur and that this was just a slightly unusual occurrence. A third group, always fearful of the unknown, didn¡¯t want to take any chances and started running away.


    Then, there was Todd. Todd, although surprised for a second, thought that this was a golden opportunity. Due to party size limits for all Dungeons, one of the hardest parts about raiding lower-ranked Dungeons is registering for them. With a few exceptions, it is essentially first come, first serve when it comes to Dungeon raiding, at least in Merrick. Unranked Dungeoneers, though, would not be allowed to register for any Dungeons above D-rank. However, there was one exception. Dungeoneers who report the existence and location of a Dungeon Portal before it is officially listed are always entitled to a party spot in the Dungeon raid. This was set up to prevent Dungeoneers from recklessly and prematurely entering Dungeons on their own.


    However, lower-ranked Dungeoneers usually still find it too risky of a proposition to raid these Dungeons so there is a system that allows them to sell their party spot to another Dungeoneer. For example, for a thirty person B-ranked Dungeon, they could sell the spot to any Dungeoneer that registered after the thirtieth registration. When it comes to claiming the piece of the pie for such a lucrative Dungeon, a cautious, unranked or D-rank Dungeoneer can still end up receiving a big payoff despite never joining the raid.


    Todd took out his smartphone and started walking towards this gold mine of a portal. He had to control his excitement as he went to the Dungeon reporting website on his phone. However, his connection was really slow, so Todd looked around to see if anyone else was doing the same thing. It didn¡¯t seem like anyone else was doing so, but Carlos was walking over to him.


    ¡°Todd, you shouldn¡¯t get too close.¡± Carlos was right, but Todd just couldn¡¯t help himself. This was a never-before-seen portal! It was green in colour, nearly twenty feet high and about nine feet across at its widest. What else could this be but the first A-rank Dungeon Portal! Oh, the amount of money he could make off this doesn¡¯t compare to clearing D-rank or even C-rank Dungeons. With that much money, he could buy stat-enhancing equipment or weapons, or even just choose to retire the very next day.


    ¡°Hey, Carlos, do you think you can try looking up the Dungeon reporting website on your phone? My connection is really slow for some reason.¡± Todd registered Carlos¡¯ words of caution, but they simply were not a priority right now. At Todd¡¯s words though, Carlos did reach for his phone. However, before he pulled it out, Carlos suddenly jumped towards Todd and tackled him to the side. Todd¡¯s phone dropped from his hand and clattered against the pavement.


    A surprised and now-angry Todd was about to yell at Carlos when an ear-piercing scream could be heard nearby. Todd looked over and saw the people now shouting and running away in a panic. Next to the giant portal was a creature that resembled a black bear, but with three key differences. It stood on its hind legs, it was dressed in red armour, and it wore gauntlets on its fore paws that each had three, knife-like blades on them. The monster seemed to growl in annoyance at its prey that had just barely gotten out of reach.


    ¡°Run,¡± Carlos said to Todd as he let go of him. Todd was still too shocked to move or say anything. The monster looked over at Carlos, and eyed him cautiously. Carlos used his Mentalism Skill to seem more intimidating. This kept the creature back long enough for him to reach into his Inventory and equip a C-rank Dexterity Ring and a C-rank Strength Ring, each increasing the respective Stats by 50 points. He never planned to use them, but he was glad now that he let Haley convince him in the end to hold onto some equipment for her.


    Right as the monster seemed to be wisening up to Carlos buying time, Carlos was already dashing towards the monster. Carlos telegraphed a body blow, and when the monster was in the midst of reacting to that, Carlos¡¯ suddenly gave a swift uppercut to the monster¡¯s chin. The strength and speed of the blow caught the monster completely off guard and it teetered about in a daze. Carlos charged up a Power Strike and kicked at the monster¡¯s ankle. While still unbalanced, it fell to the side and Carlos delivered a Power Strike to the creature''s face while it was in the middle of trying to recover. Carlos could feel the creature¡¯s skull crack from the impact and black blood splashed out of its broken face. It fell onto the ground with a heavy thud and then disappeared into black mist.


    ¡°W- what?¡± Todd weakly gasped out, still lying on the ground.


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    ¡°I said to run.¡± Carlos spoke louder this time. Right as the monster died, the cars stopped at the crosswalk raced forward, taking their chance to get out here as soon as possible. The pedestrians were also mostly cleared out of the area by now.


    From out of the portal, two more monsters identical to the first emerged. Maybe I can just pick up Todd and run right now, Carlos thought. Then, two more monsters left. I guess I just have to stand my ground until he can leave by himself. His Insight Skill let him know there was a less than 50% chance of defeating all four of them. The odds weren¡¯t too bad. Then, a fifth one emerged from the portal. Less than 30% now. Still manageable. Two more, totalling seven, were now outside the portal. Less than 5% chance. Retreat strongly recommended.


    ¡°Todd! Get up and run!¡± This time, Carlos¡¯ words finally seemed to do the trick and Todd got onto his feet, but he didn¡¯t run.


    ¡°I- I¡¯ll fight, too!¡± Todd didn¡¯t really mean it, but he didn¡¯t want to flee as a total coward while someone else fought right in front of him. Carlos¡¯ Insight Skill let him know that Todd¡¯s assistance would be negligible. The seven monsters started to move closer, and Carlos used his Mentalism Skill to keep them focused on him as the major threat. Then, Carlos finally received the update he was waiting for.


    A-rank Dungeon Monster defeated.


    Strength increased by 4 (Bonus Stat points gained to Strength Growth Specialization; Bonus Stat         points gained due to difference in Rank)


    Defense increased by 2 (Bonus Stat point gained due to difference in Rank)


    Stamina increased by 4 (Bonus Stat point gained due to difference in Rank)


    Dexterity increased by 4 (Bonus Stat points gained to Strength Growth Specialization; Bonus Stat points gained due to difference in Rank)


    Magic increased by 2 (Bonus Stat point gained due to difference in Rank)


    New Skill acquired: Haste D


    New Skill acquired: Unarmed Combat Arts D


    Skill upgraded: Power Strike B to Power Strike A


    Skill upgraded: Mentalism A to Mentalism A+


    Although Carlos had no plans of Dungeon raiding, it did not mean he made no preparations whatsoever. For the last three years, he trained himself both physically and mentally, and in the end, he raised all of his Skills by at least one rank, and brought all of his Stats up to 99. Now, with his Stats finally exceeding 100, he was reaping a plethora of bonuses. And, thanks to his Insight, Mentalism, and Mental Resistance Skills, he had no problem quickly understanding how to utilize them.


    ¡°Todd, get out of here now before you get me killed.¡± Carlos used his Mentalism Skill to also manipulate his tone to produce the best results. Todd barely hesitated a second longer before running away.


    Carlos put on a bit of a swagger and taunted the nearest monster. It fell for the taunt and charged at him before the others. Carlos had charged up a Power Strike and used Haste to increase his movement speed in the same fluid movement as his taunt. The monster thrust out an arm to drive its clawed gauntlet into Carlos¡¯s chest, but he dodged it and delivered a Power Strike uppercut that tore the monster¡¯s head off of its body. A trail of black blood sprayed out as the rest of the monsters came running at Carlos.


    The remaining six monsters tried to box in Carlos, and since each of the monsters stood more than a foot taller than him, it was also difficult to land clean hits on their heads, the least armoured part of their bodies. However, they didn¡¯t know that Carlos had just acquired a new attack.


    With his increased speed, Carlos suddenly closed the distance to one of the monsters on the edge of surrounding him and punched it in the chest. Thanks to the Unarmed Combat Arts Skill, he could apply Defense Pierce on his punch. The armour shuddered from the impact and the monster was knocked backwards and crashed into the pavement, winded. Having broken out of the attempted containment, Carlos had more space and more time to charge up another Power Strike.


    A few of the monsters were even more wary now as they reassessed the threat level. However, Carlos successfully taunted another one of them, who quickly charged forward to its instant death by another Power Strike. The remaining four stood their ground and seemed to be silently communicating to each other while sacrificing the one that was knocked onto the ground as they did nothing when Carlos went over to finish it off.


    The final four charged forward, with two of them leading to attack simultaneously. Carlos had time to discreetly charge up another Power Strike since then, but he knew they were expecting that. One would definitely die from the attack, but the second attacker would rush in. Even if Carlos evaded the charge with his speed, he would likely lack the speed to evade the remaining two. However, there was one thing they failed to consider due to Carlos¡¯ constant taunting.


    Carlos ran away. Everyone had fled the scene by now, and there was nothing else to be gained by him continuing to fight them. Now that Carlos simply had to run away without fighting, the monsters were simply not fast enough to catch up to him. As a precaution, though, Carlos did run away in the direction where the fewest number of people fled to, just in case some hadn¡¯t gotten far enough away. If Carlos just kept running, and only had to help one or two other people at most, he was sure that high-ranked Dungeoneers would arrive in time to deal with the monsters.


    However, a second before planning out his full escape route, his Insight Skill discarded all those plans. Then, a second after that, Carlos felt the portal flash once more. From out of the portal, a giant, orange bear emerged. Other than the colour, it was similar to the D-rank Dungeon Boss in its appearance, including the armour that covered its body. However, it was even larger, and its markings were black in colour, and did not appear to resemble the shapes of markings from the D-rank Dungeon Boss. In particular, it had a large black marking on its chest that seemed to resemble some sort of roaring beast.


    The giant bear let out a powerful roar that reverberated around the area, causing the traffic lights, shop windows, and other glass objects to shatter. Carlos was alerted that he resisted the effects of fear due to his Mental Resistance Skill. His Insight Skill let him know that there was a 0% chance of defeating that monster, with a 0% margin of error. Annoying inputs like this is what makes Carlos wish sometimes that he had more control over when the Skill would be active.


    Things got even worse. After the giant monster fully emerged from the portal, more of the smaller, bear-like monsters also started pouring out. Some of them were like the ones that exited earlier, but there were also some that held weapons other than the clawed gauntlets, such as claymores, halberds, and spears. Well, Carlos wasn¡¯t keen to know how different they each were, and despite looking back, never stopped running. Thankfully, with his Mentalism Skill, he made himself out to be as insignificant as he could in the body language of his running, and the giant bear turned around, disinterested in such weak prey. Another similarity it shared with the D-rank Dungeon Boss. It turned around in search of more worthy prey, but the smaller warrior bears, seeing their comrades chase after Carlos, also joined the pursuit.


    For Carlos, this still would have been fine. It was unfortunate that there was nothing he could do to delay the giant bear, but if he at least kept this group of monsters distracted, he was mitigating the potential damage and he was more than confident in his speed to continue evading these monsters until reinforcements could arrive. However, right when Carlos had turned the corner, he saw Todd, lying on the ground, frozen in fear, panic on his face. He didn¡¯t know the effects since he resisted it, but Todd must have just been in range of the roar and suffered from some debuff. If it was just Todd, the situation was still manageable, but he wasn¡¯t alone. Next to Todd, also lying immobile, were a few schoolgirls.


    Against his Insight Skill¡¯s advice, he turned around and ran towards the charging monsters. He wasn¡¯t planning to fight them all off, but to run in a different direction to lead them to. However, there were now more than thirty of them, and even just breaking through had abysmal odds. It didn¡¯t matter, though. For Carlos, if any of them died because he ran past them, he treated it the same as if he was the one to kill them himself, and he could not allow that.


    Carlos¡¯ Power Strike instantly killed one of them, and perhaps because they were too surprised by the sudden turnaround, or were wary of some new trap, the nearest monsters were not quick to react, and Carlos managed to slip past the first group. Next up were bears with halberds. The first one swung its weapon, aiming to decapitate him. Carlos went low and ran past him. The next one, however, swung at Carlos¡¯ waist level. With his increased movement and enhanced Dexterity, though, Carlos jumped off the ground and over the attack. A third halberdier bear slashed downwards at him right as he landed back on the ground. However, Carlos delivered a power strike to that bear¡¯s leg while it was in mid-swing, causing it to let go of the weapon as Carlos¡¯ fist smashed through the armour and tore its leg apart.


    Carlos picked up the fallen halberd and continued onto the next group, running past the remaining halberdier bears. Carlos had never held such a weapon before, and it was heavier than expected. Playing into this, Carlos exaggerated how unwieldy the weapon was for him and the claymore-wielding bears eagerly awaited him. Carlos taunted one of them, while still playing up the burden of carrying the halberd, and that one seemed ready to duel. Perhaps these bears were especially prideful, because the other claymore-wielding bears made no move at all to try to surround him or overwhelm him with numbers. In fact, some of them seemed to be warning the other warrior bears from interfering. Well, that was more than welcome by him, but he had to be quick about this, lest the earliest bears let the others know about his feigning.


    The bear waited for Carlos to approach, and after formulating the next course of action, he made his move. Carlos slowly charged at the bear, seemingly struggling even more to keep the halberd in hand. The bear waited for Carlos to enter its attack range, but just before he did, Carlos went down low, as if being weighed down even more by the halberd, and then attacked with incredible speed. He thrusted the halberd into the bear¡¯s neck, and although he tried to evade it at the last second, it still cut at least an inch into its neck. Black blood sprayed out and the surprised bear used a free hand to bat the halberd away. Carlos let go of the halberd and ran past it. His objective was never to kill any of them, but to just evade for as long as possible. There was one claymore-wielding bear that was close enough to try to attack him while he was running by, but Carlos had saved up a Power Strike for this.  He punched through its chest armour and killed it before it could swing its weapon.


    Carlos gained some distance from the shocked and outraged claymore-wielding bears and was up against the last of them. It was a mixed group of gauntlet bears and spear-wielding bears. As he approached, Carlos felt his lungs start to burn. He still had mana to spare, but he was finally starting to feel the physical after effects of constantly using Haste while fighting past the bears. After one final push, though, he could finally just focus on only running.


    The gauntlet bears charged in first while the spear-wielding bears spread out in the back to close off Carlos¡¯ retreat. Just as the first gauntlet bears were about to attack, Carlos dove and rolled on the ground. The bears did not anticipate this move and some of the gauntlet bears simply couldn¡¯t attack such a low target. In fact, a couple of them nearly tripped into another bear when they tried to come to a sudden stop. Carlos rolled past some of them and tripped one of them over so that its body could impede the ones he just passed. Carlos quickly got back up and continued to run.  One gauntlet bear managed to catch up to him right as he was getting back up, but Carlos swept at one of its ankles to knock it over.


    The spear-wielding bears held their ground and waited for Carlos to enter their attack range. He charged right at one of the bears, and then stumbled. Or at least, he appeared to. The bear, fooled into thinking Carlos had finally tired himself out, attacked. The very second it did, though, Carlos dodged the attack, perfectly predicting the path of the attack and just ran on through, not intending to waste any more of his mana. Carlos was sure that they wouldn¡¯t be able to catch up to his pace, but they still were not finished. As a final, coordinated attack, the spear-wielding bears through their spears at Carlos. Carlos had to look behind him and carefully observe the throwing motions and timing to avoid them all. However, he did succeed, and was finally on his way out.


    Just as Carlos was finally about to feel some relief, he saw the green portal again. Surrounding it were at least twenty more warrior bears, and even more were coming out. His Insight Skill let him know there was little chance of breaking past this group with the other bears still pursuing him. Thanks to his Mental Resistance, Carlos still did not despair and quickly thought up what to do next. There was almost no chance of getting through this unscathed, so he considered the acceptable level of injuries he could sustain.


    Before Carlos could finish his calculations though, there was suddenly the sound of an explosion from behind him. Carlos stopped running for a second and looked back. Chunks of pavement flew up into the air and a glittering blue mist appeared out of a crater in the ground. Then, Carlos saw something blue flash before his eyes and hit another bear behind him. It exploded with a huge cloud of blue dust, the explosion consuming both that bear and everything else within several feet. The bears just outside of the blue cloud were knocked up into the air and glittering blue dust rushed past their bodies. Within seconds, the bears were covered in some sort of icy film and then their bodies shattered into pieces. Another blue flash appeared, and this time Carlos saw what it was. It was an arrow.


    This arrow created another blue explosion that killed several more monsters at once. The few ones that remained scattered about, and the bears by the portal were now distracted by the explosions. When the mist cleared away, both the blue mist and the black mist of the dead monsters, Carlos could see a man in the distance. He had a bow in his hands, and for just an instant, he looked like he was out of arrows. But then, a blue arrow suddenly appeared, nocked in the bow. He fired his shot and the arrow exploded on more of the monsters, leaving only one warrior bear left behind Carlos.


    Carlos quickly started running towards the man. On his way there, the final warrior bear tried to get in his way, still holding a grudge against him, but Carlos dodged its attack and knocked it over. Then, because he didn¡¯t want to use another Power Strike, he finished it off by crushing its throat with a stomp. On the other side, more bears continued to exit the portal and there were now more than twice as many of them, with that number continuing to increase. The archer came up to Carlos.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡± There wasn¡¯t really any concern in the man¡¯s voice, but nor was there any ill will. It was just a question that he asked more out of obligation.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine. Thanks for your help.¡±


    ¡°Are there any other Dungeoneers around?¡± he asked. ¡°Preferably A-rank.¡±


    ¡°No, not that I am aware of.¡± Carlos either forgot, or simply didn¡¯t think it mattered, to mention Todd.


    ¡°Damn, how do I keep getting mixed up into this,¡± the archer muttered to himself.


    ¡°Should we retreat?¡±


    ¡°That would be a good idea.¡± The archer looked like he was about to turn around, but suddenly froze in place. ¡°But, I have to stay.¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t confirmed, but this portal is almost certainly an A-rank Dungeon Portal. There¡¯s no telling what else could come out of it.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I hear you. Even if I wished I didn¡¯t.¡± The man bit his lip as he created another magical arrow and fired it at the monsters by the portal, prompting them to finally advance upon him. Carlos was having some difficulty understanding his sudden action. ¡°Run away. Also, since you seem to be a Dungeoneer, go pick up those kids off the street while you¡¯re at it.¡±


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we retreat together?¡±


    ¡°Just get out of here,¡± he said with an exasperated voice. With his Insight Skill strongly concurring, Carlos started to run away. As he fled, he finally realized who he was talking to. Carlos saw his face on the news a few times, and he was also interviewed alongside Haley once. He was one of Merrick¡¯s A-rank Dungeoneers: Virgil Quinn. Carlos never got the vibe that he was the stalwart, heroic type, but he supposed that this was a mistaken impression. If his Insight Skill could speak right then, it would tell him it wasn¡¯t.

 Third Anniversary (Part 2)

    Date: March 13, 2023 - 6:00 am


    Location: Sunland


    The alarm goes off, and the man wakes up from his sleep. He turns off the alarm clock and does a sort of half yawn and half grown before slowly getting out of bed. As a Dungeoneer, there is no real need for him to wake up so early everyday, but he does it to try and keep himself disciplined. Or at least, that¡¯s what he tells himself. More likely, it¡¯s just because he is used to waking up at this time while in school and during his old job.


    As per his usual routine, he goes into the kitchen, drinks a glass of water, and then goes to his washroom to deal with his business. After washing his face with cold water, he heads back into the kitchen to eat something. The breakfast of the day, and for everyday for the past several weeks, is cereal. Not quite the norm for breakfasts for working people in Sunland, but not exactly unusual either. It was, however, a bit strange for a B-rank Dungeoneer to eat something so cheap and simple for breakfast.


    Even though his promoted rank was only granted recently, he has participated in about a dozen C-rank Dungeon clears. Originally, this man had also planned to save up the money from Dungeon raiding to purchase an apartment building for himself since he didn¡¯t like being a tenant and wanted to have control over his neighbours. He also was saving up quite a bit to use cash to pay off as much of the purchase price as possible, since he didn¡¯t like being in debt and had a general dislike of banks.


    However, while he was still a C-rank Dungeoneer, he suddenly gained a certain unique Skill that ended up burning a lot of money. For now, he will just have to save up some more money again, which hopefully shouldn¡¯t take too long since he is now a B-rank Dungeoneer, one of only a handful in Sunland.


    The man finished his breakfast and then went to his window, looking at the sunrise. Then, he felt the apartment shake. Initially, the man wasn¡¯t particularly concerned, since earthquakes were relatively common in Sunland, since it was an island nation that lay along several different fault lines. However, when he saw a bright flash of green light as well, he instantly became uneasy.


    He waited with baited breath for a couple seconds after the shaking ceased. The green light dimmed significantly, but he thought he could barely still see it in the distance. Then, he heard the sounds of car alarms going off in the distance. Then, shouting. Then, screaming. Then, something clearly inhuman. Amidst these sounds, something finally caught his eye. A dark cloud appeared from the corner of a nearby building, and he stared at it more intensely.


    The cloud started to break off into multiple directions, one of them heading straight for his apartment. When the cloud got closer, he saw what it was. It was a swarm of gigantic, lime-green, hornet-like creatures. Their six legs had serrated edges, their compound eyes glowed with an ominous red light, and they were about the size of full grown stallions.


    Several of the hornet-like monsters seemed to notice him and went flying straight towards his balcony. Not wanting them to break it, he opened it before they arrived. The man had observed long enough, and was ready to make his move. He opened up his inventory and from out of the invisible space, two human-sized figures, dressed in samurai armour and wielding katanas, appeared. Their faces were obscured by the masked helmets they wore.


    ¡°Ah, I should have equipped one of them with a bow,¡± the man said as the two figures went out to the balcony and cut down the first two hornets to come close enough. The man then reached into his Inventory again, after a couple seconds, pulled out two more human-sized figures.


    However, they were not armoured, and wore cheap business suits instead. Their faces were also covered up by wooden masks. They both had a bow, and a quiver of arrows. After the samurai-like figures cut down a couple more, the hornets, although looking as fierce as before, were now keeping their distance. Then, the next two were shot down by the archers in the back. There were still ten more hovering around, but the man could not wait any longer.Stolen novel; please report.


    ¡°Protect this area and then advance when it is cleared,¡± he said to the four right before he jumped off his balcony. He safely landed on the bottom of his five storey jump and started running towards the sounds of mayhem. Above him, two more hornets were shot down. When he turned the corner, he saw a terrible sight.


    The alarms were still going off non-stop, for both cars and stores, but there was no more screaming. Everyone here was now dead. There were barely any hornets in this area, but in their place, were two other types of gigantic bugs. Giant, black millipedes the size of limousines crawled about the area, smashing through more of the surrounding buildings. And, amongst the corpses of the humans he saw littered about the area, he saw dozens of giant white spiders, the size of school desks, wrapping the bodies up with silk. One body was completely cocconeed, and he saw the spiders sinking their fangs into it.


    At his arrival, a couple millipedes turned to face him while the rest continued to spread out to the rest of the city. Among the spiders, only the ones that were not already near human corpses paid him any heed. This gave the man sufficient time to take in the scene and plan out what to do next. Unfortunately for him, he didn¡¯t have a high-rank Mental Resistance Skill, and he was having difficulty controlling himself and keeping himself calm in the face of this nightmarish scene.


    Fortunately, the monsters that noticed him were approaching him rather slowly, perhaps cautious about this human who did not try to immediately flee. The man reached into his Inventory. It cost him almost his entire savings, and now it was time to showcase the full extent of his Skill.


    From out of his Inventory, the man took out six more human-sized figures. Four of them were dressed in samurai armour, but two of them wore plate armour. The samurai-like figures wielded katanas or spears whereas the knight-like figures each carried a longsword and shield. It was at this point that the man regretted now stocking up on more bows, but he reasoned that that would have required him to have stocked up on a lot of arrows as well.


    The spiders paused, curious about the sudden reinforcements, whereas the millipedes continued trundling along towards them. The samurai went in first and slashed at the millipedes. The shells of the millipedes were very sturdy, and although the man had no way of knowing at the time, they were tough enough to completely deflect ordinary, armour-piercing rounds. However, these were no ordinary katanas. They were enhanced C-rank weapons. They sliced through the millipedes, and the cautious spiders became even more wary. They started to retreat and grouped up by the other spiders that continued to bind the human corpses.


    The two knights boldly made their approach towards the first group of spiders, while two of the samurai started hunting down the other millipedes. Two of the samurai remained by the side of the Dungeoneer, acting as his bodyguards. When the knights got close, all the spiders attacked together, latching onto whatever part of the knight¡¯s body they could. The knights made little attempt to try to throw them off of them and proceeded to slash at the ones they could. The spiders tried to sink their fangs into their armour, and due to the spiders¡¯ Defense Pierce, they could.


    The spiders¡¯ secreted their venom, but it made no impact on either of the knights. They continued to slash and kill the spiders or smash them with their shields. More spiders came over to try and take down these knights, but also to no avail. The Dungeoneer had a brief smile of satisfaction.


    His warriors were created using his unique Skill, Doll Master, and being inorganic, were unaffected by the spiders¡¯ venom. They were equipped with C-rank equipment that he either enhanced with his Enhancement Skill, or created using a combination of his Smithing and Enchantment Skills. The ones he made were sometimes of lower quality, but they were also cheaper than having to buy them on the open market. If he had more time and wasn¡¯t in such a rush to equip ten of them (still ran out of time and money for two of them), maybe he wouldn¡¯t be as broke. However, he became almost obsessed with creating them and wanted to make as many as his Skill allowed. He even wasted a lot of time remaking some of them since he also wanted them to appear as human-like as possible.


    The Dungeoneer¡¯s feeling of satisfaction at the performance of his warriors, though, would soon come to an end. The Dungeon Portal flashed once more, and a colossal monster emerged from the portal. A giant, grey centipede came out of the portal and twisted itself up into the air, revealing its massive length. It extended itself to a nearby building, and started to coil itself around it right as the entirety of its body had finally exited the portal. On top of its tremendous length of at least six hundred feet, it also moved with incredible speed.


    As if the centipede couldn¡¯t care less about the resistance the Dungeoneer was putting up, it didn¡¯t turn to face him even once and just continued to rest on top of the building. When it was at the top, it used its lower body to squeeze and pulverize the outside of the building. With so much of the building destroyed, the rest of it completely collapsed, and the centipede crashed onto the ground. However, it was completely unscathed and it emitted a strange, high pitch noise at intermittent intervals. To the Dungeoneer, it was almost as if the centipede was laughing, like it was simply enjoying itself and reveling in the destruction it caused.


    It continued to ignore the Dungeoneer and left to start climbing another building. The Dungeoneers Dolls continued to fearlessly fight the monsters on ground while he barely kept himself standing, instead of collapsing in sheer terror. In the distance, perhaps since now an entire building was gone now, he could more clearly hear screams and shouts in the distance. Then, he heard the sound of grinding stone and rubble as the giant centipede began crushing another building.


    ¡°We¡¯re done for,¡± the man said to himself.

 Third Anniversary (Part 3)

    Date: March 12, 2023 - 10:54 pm


    Location: West Byzantine


    Rome was under siege. From the giant green portal that suddenly appeared in the center of the city, giant scaled and winged beasts flew across the city. They had lizard-like heads and their wings had claws. This was somewhat similar to the harpies, but their wingspan was even longer, and they lacked any feathers. Their bellies were smooth, but the rest of their body was covered in green scales. When several of these monsters landed on various rooftops, their clawed feet easily dug through them, and for one of the older buildings, their claws dug right through, opening up a hole, and they had to take flight once more.


    For a time, as dozens and dozens of these wyvern-like monsters flew out of the portal, they only circled around the area, and made no preemptive attacks against the people on the streets. However, when a much larger wyvern, which had golden scales, flew out of the portal, this changed. It released a loud cry that resonated throughout the entire city square, and the wyverns started to attack the remaining humans that had not yet fled the area.


    The Holy Vanguard of the Roman Church arrived as soon as they could, but were far too late to save anyone that was still around the city square. A few of the Holy Vanguard members were able to attack from range, either using bows or magic, but most of them could not. Instead, they were tasked to act as bodyguards or to go to the other parts of the city to rescue civilians.


    Although they were heavily outnumbered, and had to fight against flying enemies, the Holy Vanguard were able to defend relatively well against the wyverns. However, that was only because the giant wyvern had yet to make another move. It was more than twice the size of a fighter jet, and with its golden scales, it seemed to shine under the moonlight. It seemed to observe apathetically as it saw its kin being slain.


    ¡°That makes five now,¡± one of the Holy Vanguard archers said after shooting down another wyvern. The one next to him fired a flaming lance at a different one, which immediately set the monster ablaze. Seconds later, it started falling to the ground, and disappeared into black mist as soon as it crashed onto the ground, throwing up pieces of broken stone.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a competition, Angelo.¡±


    ¡°Maybe not between us, but I said to the other teams that our team will easily take first place.¡±


    ¡°What? What did you bet? You better not have put anything that¡¯s mine on the line!¡± the third one exclaimed.


    ¡°Why are you so worried, Romeo? We¡¯re going to win.¡± Angelo shot down another wyvern right before he said this. ¡°That makes six for me now.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re all flying around in the air! How am I supposed to take any of them down!¡± Romeo argued.


    ¡°I don¡¯t expect you to. You¡¯re the healer in the group so you¡¯re just here for support and to save anyone around who¡¯s still alive.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s move onto the next area,¡± the spellcaster commanded.


    ¡°Sure thing, leader.¡± The three of them changed locations to an area with more wyverns in sight.


    ¡°Seriously, though. What did you bet?¡± Romeo asked Angelo.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Let it be a surprise when we win.¡±


    ¡°No, tell me now! You¡¯ve bet so much and lost before, and then you made me and Leonardo help you pay it off! You still haven¡¯t paid me back for the last time, too!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, don¡¯t worry about it. After this one, I can pay you back with what I win. Besides, we only lost because Francesco was doing the same raid. Now that he¡¯s left the Holy Vanguard, we¡¯re the number one team again.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t mention that man¡¯s name again,¡± Leonardo began. ¡°Such a blasphemous one, he was. To only join under God¡¯s banner to pay off his debts, but leave as soon as it was convenient.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, yeah, okay. So, anyways, just relax Romeo, we have this in the bag. I mean, unless some other team actually kills the Boss.¡± Romeo looked at him with eyes wide with horror.


    ¡°Are you crazy! Did you actually bet with the other teams about killing the Boss. There¡¯s no way we can do that!¡±


    ¡°Hey, seriously, relax! I just threw that in there for fun. Obviously no team can actually take on the A-rank Dungeon Boss, no matter what it is. The only A-rank was Fran-¡± Leonardo glared at Angelo. ¡°-there aren¡¯t any A-rank Dungeoneers among the Holy Vanguard, so don¡¯t worry about that.¡± Romeo still looked very upset, so Leonardo said one more thing to reassure him. ¡°Also, the mid-boss is worth a hundred kills, so we¡¯ll definitely win.¡± Romeo¡¯s expression clearly conveyed that this did not work.


    ¡°That¡¯s it! I¡¯ve had enough. I am going to demand that I be transferred to another team!¡± Romeo had said the same thing before, and that obviously didn¡¯t lead to anything. Angelo also knew that there was nothing forcing Romeo to pay up for any lost bets, but it was also this kind of mindset, which made him follow the rules laid out by others, that made it so easy for Angelo to tease. Angelo could pay off his own losses if he wanted to, but he just liked messing with Romeo, and Leonardo was mostly indifferent to the matter.


    Romeo continued to whine and complain as the three continued to move around and take down more wyverns. Despite the noisiness, several minutes passed by peacefully. But then, for no discernible reason, the giant golden wyvern which was resting in the city square suddenly took flight.


    ¡°Oh, is it going to attack now?¡± Angelo asked. His tone was nonchalant, but even though all three of them were B-rank Dungeoneers, he still knew it would likely be difficult to fight against it. The wyvern circled around the city square once and then looked over in their direction. Although its wings were massive, it was clear that it was using magic to stay afloat as it was now above the city despite not flapping its wings. The wyvern then opened its mouth, and they could see something glowing red appear in its open mouth.


    ¡°Take cover, now!¡± Leonardo ordered. The three of them quickly ran behind a large church and Romeo started casting protection magic on the three of them. Leonardo supported this by casting magic that also raised their Defenses and their fire magic resistance, and Angelo cast reinforcement magic on the church they were hiding behind. None of them felt the need to debate whether or not it was blasphemous to take cover behind a church like this.


    The giant wyvern finished preparing its attack a few seconds later, and then released a massive blast of fire straight at the church they were hiding behind. The instant the magical flames hit the church, it started to rapidly disintegrate. In less than two seconds, almost the entirety of the church was utterly destroyed, with the reinforced section of the church lasting a fraction of a second longer. However, the flames did not abate, and they scorched the area around the church as well, including the three Dungeoneers. The three of them could see the stone around them crack, and then melt away from the fire and pools of liquefied stone started to surround the three of them and the protective bubble of magic. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    The protective bubble didn¡¯t last much longer than everything else though. The layers of magic rapidly dissipated and then completely disappeared. Now, their bodies were directly taking on the sea of fire. Well, mostly Leonardo¡¯s and Angelo¡¯s bodies. The three of them had huddled together, and Romeo was the most protected amongst the three of them. However, all three of them could feel the intense heat, which had it not been offset by the fire magic resistance, would have cooked them alive immediately. Of course, the resistance did not completely protect them. The equipment that they wore suffered heavy damage, and started to melt or burn away. This also burned their flesh as well. It was painful to endure, but the three of them held on even as they were being stripped and roasted.


    Finally, the wyvern finished breathing its stream of fire, and the three Dungeoneers thought they had all survived. Leonardo and Angelo were both mostly naked now, with little of their equipment remaining now, and Romeo was a bit better off. All of his non-magical equipment was burnt away, but his robes, although heavily burnt, were still somewhat intact. This was a particularly strange sensation, as Romeo could feel piles of ash underneath his robes, the remnants of the rest of what he was wearing.


    Burnt, and injured, but still alive and able to move, the three of them got back up, but saw that they were still surrounded by fire. Fire and melted stone, as nothing that even remotely resembled the church was left standing. It was gone, completely. The wyvern noticed that the three had survived, and then opened its mouth again.


    ¡°No, there¡¯s no way¡­¡± Angelo said, finally losing the cheer in his voice.


    ¡°Don¡¯t just stand there!¡± Leonardo shouted at Angelo, as he started casting magic on the three of them again. Even with fear clear on his face, Romeo also quickly started to cast protection magic once more. Angelo knew that this was it, and that their acts were pointless. Although it barely lasted, the church was definitely a factor in them surviving the last attack. However, seeing how seriously they were still doing whatever they could, Angelo, still decided to struggle in vain alongside them.


    Perhaps because it had attacked very recently, the giant wyvern¡¯s next attack was taking longer. Although, a longer time for preparation was less than five extra seconds. If they had known about this earlier, maybe they could have spent their time trying to run somewhere else. However, that assumed that the wyvern couldn¡¯t simply turn its head before firing its attack, which was an incredibly risky assumption. No, Angelo knew that this spot was going to be their final stand.


    Since there was no wall or structure to reinforce, Angelo took out his bow, and started to enchant and enhance his arrow. Leonardo saw what Angelo was doing, but said nothing. Romeo wasn¡¯t even looking, and was pouring every last bit of mana he could in protection magic. However, he noticed when Angelo stepped out of the protected area.


    ¡°Huh?¡± Romeo glanced back and saw Angelo walking away. ¡°Angelo, get back here!¡±


    ¡°Your protection will be stronger in a smaller space,¡± Angelo responded.


    ¡°What-¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t argue with me!¡± Angelo poured as much mana as he could into his next attack. He was a B-rank Dungeoneer, but only just barely so. Even against fully debuffed B-rank Bosses, he wasn¡¯t strong enough to deal lethal attacks. Even if he was a bit stronger than the last time he entered a B-rank Dungeon, he knew there was no way that even a lucky shot from him would have any chance of killing the giant wyvern. No, he just needed to deal enough damage to interrupt it. If he was very lucky, it could cancel the attack, even, but he wasn¡¯t banking on that.


    It seemed that Romeo wanted to argue a bit more, but Leonardo kept him down. Then, a second later, the wyvern finally about to unleash its second attack. Angelo¡¯s timing was good. He shot his arrow just as the wyvern was about to fire its second fire blast. The arrow he shot had Defense Pierce, Wind Resistance, Magic Resistance, Reinforcement, Poison, Lightning, and Acid all applied onto it. This was in addition to the mana he poured into it to increase the arrow¡¯s Strength. He just hoped that with all of this put together, it would reach the wyvern and damage it.


    The arrow did reach, and it did manage to pierce the inside of the wyvern¡¯s mouth. That arrow, however, did nothing to stop the second attack, other than adding in splashes of black blood to the stream of fire. Angelo had a complicated smile on his face when he saw the arrow connect. When he saw the fire appear, he wondered why his life wasn¡¯t flashing before his eyes. Maybe his brain is just too tired after using all those different types of enchantments and enhancements? As the fire came closer, his vision dulled, as he was ready to accept death.


    Right as the flames were about to reach Angelo and the others behind him, something streaked across the sky and drove itself into the wyvern¡¯s neck. The stream of flames wildly spread around the Dungeoneers, and only engulfed each of them for less than a second. A second after that, the stream came to an abrupt end as an explosion of fire erupted from the wyvern¡¯s mouth. This was a result of a backlash of magic from the interrupted attack.


    The injured wyvern lost control of its flight magic for an instant and started falling to the ground. It tried to recast its flight magic before hitting the ground, but whatever had plunged itself into its neck was now slicing through even more of its neck. The wyvern smashed through a museum, destroying everything in its path until it finally hit the bottom floor. The wounded wyvern could feel its neck being even more torn apart after they landed, whatever having fallen with it unperturbed by the fall.


    In desperation, the wyvern thrashed its wings about and then tried to roll around. At first, it thought this worked as intended, as the wyvern could finally feel the cutting into its neck cease. However, when the wyvern was on its clawed wings and feet, ready to take flight once more, it found something flying towards its face at an incredible speed.


    The spear ran right through the wyvern¡¯s skull, and a bit later as if it was still yet to realize it was dead, the wyvern¡¯s body collapsed back onto the ground and started to disappear into black mist. Francesco Ricci walked away and eventually exited the museum. When he was outside, he saw the three Dungeoneers amidst the flames.


    Thanks to the fire magic resistance that was applied to Angelo, he survived the flames, but he was in critical condition. Right beside him, Romeo was chugging a mana potion while healing him in order to stabilize him. Leonardo was moving around them, putting out the fires, but he stopped for a second when he noticed him.


    However, Francesco paid him no heed and just continued moving to where the green portal was. Without saying a thing and even indicating he had noticed them, Francesco entered the portal.


    ¡°L- Leonardo, I don¡¯t have any more mana potions!¡± Romeo said, out of breath and clearly exhausted. Romeo looked over to Leonardo, and from the corner of his eye, also saw Francesco enter the portal. ¡°L- Leonardo?¡±


    ¡°Sorry. Here.¡± Leonardo took out a mana potion from his Inventory and gave it to Romeo, who started drinking it immediately. In the middle of drinking it, Romeo left out a sudden giggle. He didn¡¯t find anything about the situation particularly funny, but it was just a common symptom of suddenly gaining mana, or a mana high, as some Dungeoneers called it.


    ¡°W- who was that?¡± Romeo asked, before giggling to himself before continuing to heal Angelo. Leonardo said nothing and continued putting out more fires.


    On the other side of the portal, Francesco saw several dozen wyverns right in front of him, likely the next wave to exit. They attacked him on sight but he easily dispatched them. After killing them, he started advancing through the Dungeon. The Dungeon was a mostly mountainous area, which contained many cliffs and ravines. Flying in the distance, he could see even more wyverns.


    However, there was more than just that. After he killed the giant wyvern, the notification confirmed that it was only the mid-Boss. If a wyvern lord was the mid-Boss, then there could only be one other thing in this Dungeon that could be the Boss. The further he went into the Dungeon, the more sure he was. He had been through this kind of environment several times in the past, and his instincts were screaming at him about what he was going to face next.


    There were wyverns all throughout this Dungeon, but he ignored them. They didn''t matter. As long as they didn¡¯t come up right next to him, he didn¡¯t need to bother with them. The Dungeoneers outside could deal with them. No, he was here to deal with the truly dangerous threats.


    The first place he headed to was a particular part of one of the mountains. To most, it wouldn¡¯t really stand out, but he knew that this was the sort of area where only the higher ranked draconic beasts preferred to nest. He flew over there by holding onto his spear and launching it with his Telekinesis Skill. When he arrived, he saw it was empty save for an Empowering Stone. Francesco figured that this must be where the wyvern lord nested. He destroyed the Empowering Stone, and then moved on.


    As he advanced, he saw a wyvern lord. However, it was already flying past him, and his intuition was telling him that he had to hurry. A part of him still wanted to kill it, but since it would be a mid-air fight, and it was likely he wouldn¡¯t get the element of surprise this time, the fight might end up dragging on. It still hurt his pride a bit, but he chose to continue onwards.


    He flew to his next destination, but had to take evasive actions before he got there. It was another wyvern lord nest, but this one wasn¡¯t empty. The wyvern lord charged up a fire blast before he got there, and he had to use his Skill to quickly change direction. The wyvern lord moved his head to track Francesco¡¯s movements, but he was just a bit too fast. Francesco eventually came to rest on the mountain, several hundred feet away from the nest. The mountain was melted and burnt away where the stream of fire made contact.


    The wyvern lord observed Francesco, but he wasted no time doing the same. He immediately started advancing towards the wyvern lord. However, he did so at a slower pace. The wyvern lord was fooled. He was moving only slightly slower than when he evaded the first attack, so it thought it would have enough time to use another fire blast. However, that was only because Francesco had to suddenly change direction, and he was also conserving mana. When he saw the wyvern lord open its mouth to prepare another fire blast, he instantly accelerated.


    Right before the attack was ready, Francesco flew in and plunged his spear into the wyvern¡¯s neck, causing a magical backlash. There was an explosion inside the wyvern¡¯s mouth, and while it was injured and disoriented, Francesco easily slew the wyvern lord in a ground battle.


    However, right as he killed the wyvern lord, he had to suddenly jump off the nest when a giant ball of fire collided with it, setting it ablaze. Just now, flying from around a nearby mountain, the creature he was expecting had finally arrived. Unlike a wyvern, it had two, full-fledged wings. Its neck and head, more dinosaur-like than lizard-like, were far more muscular and intimidating. The same could be said for its legs, which seemed to belong to a tyrannosaurus rex. Overall, it lived up exactly to what humans would expect. Covered in red scales, and with smoke still coming out in wisps from his mouth, it was a dragon.